During the debates, I had fun trying to pick out the body language signals that I recently read about.
Hillary Clinton's handshake strategy was particularly interesting. First, recall that when someone turns their hand so it is above the other persons hand (a palm-down handshake), it's a signal of dominance. Clinton demonstrated her dominance through her handshake strategy in two respects.
First came when all of the candidates were brought on stage together between debates. The Democrats entered the stage from the right. This means that when shaking hands with the Republican candidates, their hand would be covered up and the Republicans would appear dominant. Clinton, however, smartly walked across the stage and started shaking hands from the other side.
Second came after the debate ended and she shook hands with Obama and Edwards who she sparred with throughout the night. It was subtle but, at the same time, clear as day. When shaking hands with them, both had their hands vertically. I'm sure Edwards and Obama know better than to get palm-down handshaked. However, just as the handshake came to an end and they were releasing their grips, bam! She turns her wrists to establish dominance and then lets go. Sneaky.
Hillary Clinton's handshake strategy was particularly interesting. First, recall that when someone turns their hand so it is above the other persons hand (a palm-down handshake), it's a signal of dominance. Clinton demonstrated her dominance through her handshake strategy in two respects.
First came when all of the candidates were brought on stage together between debates. The Democrats entered the stage from the right. This means that when shaking hands with the Republican candidates, their hand would be covered up and the Republicans would appear dominant. Clinton, however, smartly walked across the stage and started shaking hands from the other side.
Second came after the debate ended and she shook hands with Obama and Edwards who she sparred with throughout the night. It was subtle but, at the same time, clear as day. When shaking hands with them, both had their hands vertically. I'm sure Edwards and Obama know better than to get palm-down handshaked. However, just as the handshake came to an end and they were releasing their grips, bam! She turns her wrists to establish dominance and then lets go. Sneaky.
