Your resting thinking face

I spend a lot of my week watching leaders think. On video calls, in workshops, in coaching sessions. And there's one thing almost nobody knows about themselves: what their face does while they're concentrating. It's also called their 'neutral'.

You know your smile. You know your presentation face. But your THINKING face? Most of us are not quite aware of it.

Why does it matter? When you habitually furrow your brow while processing a proposal, you feel nothing in particular. You're just thinking. The person opposite you (watching you) doesn't see thinking. They see disapproval. And they likely won't ask. They'll quietly bring you a smaller version of the idea next time.

There's one truth. The higher you sit in an organisation (i.e. the more power you have), the more people try to read and interpret every nuance in your face. They are also less likely to check whether they read it right.

So here's my invitation: become aware of your current 'neutral' (feedback!) and decide whether you want to intentionally change it. It requires a bit of training and conscious 'reprogramming', but I think it's worth it!

How aware are you of your deep thinking 'neutral'?