Kate and Meghan's recent appearances sparked immediate comparisons between them.
But way beyond how did they look, there's a very good business body language lesson
to be learned from both.
Welcome back, my Body Language Buddies! my name is Jesús Enrique Rosas, I'm the Body
Language Guy, and it would be great if you join us... by just liking this video, subscribing
and hitting that bell.
Let's get down to it!
I get this question every now and then, how can I project confidence at work?
what is the best way to present yourself in a business setting?
What is the right body language of sales and negotiations?
And maybe you have stumbled upon these lists that suggest you the way that you have to
stand, how to give a good handshake or how to use active listening.
And in many ways these lists are right, but they don't address the core concept of what
business is about.
And it is trust.
Everyone is going to be more comfortable doing business with people that they trust.
And that's when concepts like being in control, looking confident and be joyful are critical
for that business image.
In the case of Kate and Meghan, we're not exactly talking about business, but both of
them are doing service.
They have foundations, they work with charities, and that kind of value that they offer, requires
the same brand image work, both personal and corporate.
Now, I'm going to ask you a question and I want you to think about it before giving you,
what is my answer to that, what is my point of view.
When you look at Harry and Meghan on one side, and you look at William and Kate on the other,
which couple do you think appears more confident, which couple looks more in control?
And not just in these pictures, but in general.
All the appearances that you can remember.
I know that the first answer that you're going to come up with, is subjective.
That's part of the exercise and that's precisely it's so important.
But you have to think about it, and before giving the answer, there's another factor
that we should consider.
You might think that since we're in the times of social media and the internet, then the
personal face of businesses and foundations have become a trend.
Like, you could not think about Apple without thinking of Steve Jobs, or think about Amazon
without thinking of Jeff Bezos, and so on.
It's like the personal brand of the head, in this case the CEO, becomes part of the
brand of the company.
And that's great, because it doesn't matter the size of the company, getting to know the
person that is in charge, gives some humanity to the organization itself.
Well, the "humanity" part can have broad interpretations, but bear with me on this...
Both Kate and Meghan are the faces of their corresponding foundations, and they transfer
their own personal brand to their organizational brand.
And everything would go smoothly, if not because this big problem arises:
There comes a time when it's really difficult to define when does the personal brand end,
and where does the corporate brand begins.
For example, you might be aware of all the times Elon Musk has used his personal Twitter
account and a couple days later he's had to do some damage control with his shareholders.
Now, what does this have to do with body language?
And it has everything to do, because this risk that arises from the blend between personal
and corporate image brings the concept of compartmentalization.
You have to do your best to divide your personal brand image, the one that refers to you, as
a person, from the one that defines you as the head of your business, or you as a professional.
And I'm going to use Kate as an example.
When she appeared with that golden dress at the No Time To Die premiere, what do you think
what kind of brand image was that?
That was her personal brand.
That was she as a person.
Yes, she is representing the Royal Family, but she is not doing work for her foundation
at that moment.
On the other hand, if you see Kate in her foundation's activities, then you are looking
at her corporate brand.
You can see that there is a well defined separation between both.
There's a compartmentalization of both images, each in their own time and space.
And that's one of the reasons why the dress was so talked about, because it was such a
huge contrast with the more discreet attires of her everyday work.
In other words, compartmentalization helps people perceive the difference between the
personal brand and the corporate brand.
That separation can help a lot with personalities such as Richard Branson, who you can see doing
crazy things, and at the same time has all the business bragging rights.
And this is something that has plagued Meghan's appearances.
Both in her 40x40 video and her New York City visit.
We are not sure where the personal brand ends and the Archewell foundation work starts.
And I'm trying to be as constructive as I can here, but this has already happened more
than once and her PR team is not getting the message.
That's why there is such interference in the way she dresses, her accessories, the transport
she uses and her message for struggling people and the difficulties the world is going through.
Since there is no clear difference between Meghan's personal and corporate brand, she
is destroying both at the same time.
And it's not that the Royal Family does not have the access to the same luxuries, such
as private flying, but it's the way how you manage that.
So, how do you apply this in the realm of body language?
Well, try to imagine this.
You decide one day that you're going to quit your job and you're going full time with a
travel vlog.
You're going to invest all your savings, you're going to travel to interesting places, documenting
everything on video and uploading it to the internet.
Sounds like a great plan, right? you're going to enjoy traveling while you work.
And that last sentence is the problem.
Because when you are trying to enjoy the places you're traveling, you remember that you have
to take out your camera to set up shots.
And then when you make it to your hotel room, you have to look for good wifi, maybe you're
trying to edit in a laptop and it is not as efficient, an many other factors.
What happens is that you're neither enjoying the trip nor working efficiently.
You're trying to do two things at the same time.
And that's what happened with Meghan.
She keeps blending personal and corporate brand, causing interference between them.
What happens in business body language?
how do you build trust by projecting warmth and confidence?
You usually are talking to one person, wether is in person or online, wether is networking,
or an interview, or a meeting, and you usually have the business goal in mind.
I have to close this deal, I have to get this job, that kind of thoughts.
And that makes you anxious and it will show in your body language, and there will be no
list of tips that will be able to help you with that.
Going back to the beginning of the video, business is always about trust.
And even if you're in a business setting you have to consciously separate your business
goals from your interactions as a person.
Because in the end, what you really want is to establish a relationship with the other
person, a relationship based on trust.
That's why it's so important to compartmentalize your business goals from the way you build
trust with the other person.
If you think about it, the way Kate made that impression with her personal brand is going
to bring awareness to her foundation.
It only happened because both her personal and corporate brands were clearly separated.
And when it was time to go in for the kill, well... she went all the way with that.
The answer to the question that I made earlier, in: which one of these couples looks more
confident, more joyful... is a matter of perspective.
But my personal take on this is that Harry and Meghan did not look as confident or happy
in this New York City tour than say, other activities in other years.
I understand that Meghan, after giving birth to her second child, is eager to kickstart
her activism, her foundation work.
That's something that any woman would like to do.
But still, she has to remember that she's in the eye of the storm so these kind of image
mistakes can cost her being called a hypocrite.
And that label does not come off easily.
#outro
Don't forget to download my 100+ body language tips, right in the description of this video.
And for quicker updates on body language and related topics, follow me on Instagram and
Twitter.
Take Care, my Body Language Buddies!