The role of body language in communication is pivotal and unquestionable. Body language comprising of postures, gestures, eye contacts, facial expressions, etc., speaks more than any content delivered verbally. In today's highly competitive environment, an employee spends most of his time at workplace. Out of his experience, he practices self-control and keeps check on his verbal communication. But, body language surpasses all controls and invariably reveals the bare truth. The interpretations of body language differ and thus they may not always necessarily convey the real feelings of an individual. Thus being more sensitive to the need of othersemployer, colleagues, customers, etc.one must improve his/her nonverbal communication. The implications of body language need to be understood by the employer as well as the employees. A better understanding of right body language brings success at workplace and contributes to the growth of the organization. It also opens more avenues of growth at personal and professional front, for the employees of the organization. This paper aims at understanding the role of body language and its interpretation at workplace. It is an attempt to understand nonverbal cues of individuals employed to enhance positivity at the workplace.

Communication is a sacred thread which connects the entire universe. It treads into the realms of an organization. Apart from playing its role of informing, reminding or persuading, it connects the employees of the organization by creating a strong bond. This bond stretches to the employee-employer, employee-customer, organization-stakeholder relationship. The purpose of communication is further enriched when it succeeds in building a win-win situation for all. But just like every coin has two sides, it is interesting to note the powerful tool of communication and at the same time the nefarious role which creates misunderstanding, conflicts, clashes and even divisions among people.

Nonverbal communication is the wordless world of communication. Body language is one of the forms of nonverbal communication which has been much researched. It includes gestures, postures, eye contact, facial expression, handshake, etc. It is vocal in communicating emotions, attitude, behavior, feelings through its various forms. Body language works involuntarily or unconsciously. It is an imperative part of the interpersonal communication and thus man has little control over it. In 1952, Ray Birdwhistell, an American Anthropologist and researcher, coined the term Kinesics which is defined as the study of body motion in relation to the nonverbal aspects of interpersonal communication (Shalini, 2009). He was of the view that all body movements have meanings and like spoken language this nonverbal communication can be analyzed further (Tammy, 2008). Albert Mehrabian in his publications on verbal and nonverbal communication came up with the 7%-38%-55% rule (Text Book, 2007). According to his study in 1971, he mentioned that there are three elements to any face-to-face communication—7% words, 38% vocal tone and 55% body language. He also stated that nonverbal communication is pivotal for communicating feelings and attitudes.

Each individual is different and has unique ways of communicating his/her thoughts. In today's competitive era, only the best of the organizations can survive. There is so much cut-throat competition that organizations have to be better than the best. The needs of the customers are also changing. The organizations are under constant pressure to deliver the best that the competitive market can afford and thus have to change their strategies with time. Thus they give the best to the external customer, be it their products or service. This requires the employees to put in their collective efforts. However, this would be possible only if there is optimism and harmony inside the organization. Most organizations, since ages, have been aiming to make the thoughts of its employees concurrent to its setup and its philosophy. An employee is compelled to align his thoughts with the ideologies of the system. Moreover the increasing job pressure is making it more difficult for the employees to work amicably. The jobs are becoming more and more target-oriented which has made the internal environment of the organization more stressful. Employees react to situations and communicate verbally as well as nonverbally. Verbal communication is monitored to quite an extent by self-control but communication involuntarily displayed by body language becomes the point of contention. Many a time, body language and its interpretations add up to the confusion created.

Soft Skills Journal, Globalization, Body Language, Silent Communicator, Organization Relationship, Stakeholder Relationship, Nonverbal Communication, Spoken Language, Facial Expressions, Eye Gestures, Lip Movement, Cheek Movement, Hand Gestures, Sitting Posture, Spatial Relationships.