Eye Contact

Proper eye contact is a vital skill that needs to be practiced.

When we talk to people, where do we look? If I look from eye to eye, or can’t look into someone’s eyes at all, I look nervous or shy. When I avoid eye contact, it makes me seem untrustworthy. That is not a way to instill confidence in the people we meet.

“The eyes are the windows of the soul.” Many years ago someone taught me that I should always look into someone’s right eye when I had a conversation. They explained that the right eye is the “eye of truth” and that the left eye is the “eye of deception.”

Experience has shown me how accurate that observation is. Now whenever I meet someone, I offer my hand, look directly into the person’s right eye and say something like, “Hi, I’m Robert Burton.” Then I keep my gaze there without staring. I go back to that same eye after looking away or speaking to someone else.

Be interested in people and as them for information and advice. Using proper eye contact, together with being honest, open, and friendly, makes people want to spend more time with us. It shows them that we are interested in them and what they have to say.

Good eye contact pays good dividends.