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A Good Trade report describes how gestures such as looking away, shrugging and pressing the lips together may accompany discomfort or uncertainty. It recommends treating these cues as prompts for a gentle check-in, not proof of what someone thinks or feels. The source does not establish how reliably any single gesture reveals an inner state.
The Good Trade report outlines ways readers might notice body language during difficult conversations, including eye movements, shoulder shrugs and lip pressing. It presents these gestures as possible signs of discomfort or uncertainty and recommends asking gently rather than assuming what another person feels; the excerpt does not provide evidence that any cue has a fixed meaning.
The report draws on comments from Janine Driver, author of You Say More Than You Think, who groups eye blocking, shoulder shrugging and lip locking as cues to watch for in everyday interactions. It describes eye blocking as covering or rubbing the eyes, looking down or away, or having difficulty maintaining eye contact. In the report’s account of Driver’s advice, these behaviors may accompany feeling overwhelmed, ashamed or unready to discuss a subject.
The article also says a shoulder shrug can accompany words that sound agreeable. It presents the gesture as a possible sign of uncertainty or reluctance, rather than a reliable verdict that someone wants to say no. The report suggests offering more time or alternatives. Its supplied excerpt begins to discuss lip locking but cuts off before explaining the cue, so its specific interpretation is not available here.
The report cites Vanessa Van Edwards, behavioral investigator and author of Cues, on possible mismatches between spoken words and body language. It advises readers to notice such mismatches and respond with curiosity. One suggested opening is: “Hey, I might be wrong, but it seems like…” The phrasing leaves room for the other person to correct the interpretation or decline to share more.
Cues Can Invite a Check-In
Nonverbal behavior can shape how people understand an interaction, and the report argues that noticing it may help someone respond with greater care. In a conversation about a sensitive subject, a pause or a gentle question may give the other person room to explain what they want, need or feel ready to discuss. That is the practical value offered by the article: use observation to open dialogue, rather than relying only on the words spoken.
There is also a risk in treating a gesture as a diagnosis. Looking away, for example, can have many possible explanations; the excerpt does not establish that it means shame or concealment. A person’s usual habits, the setting and the conversation all matter. The advice is most careful when it frames cues as possibilities and encourages a question that can be corrected. Used that way, attention to body language can support listening without turning a guess into a claim about someone else’s inner state.
Advice Drawn From Nonverbal Cues
The supplied report begins with an account of friends discussing personal subjects. One friend shrugs and touches her head while answering a question; another shifts position and presses her lips together; a third rubs her arm. The author interprets the gestures as potentially meaningful signs of unease. This is a personal account, not a reported study, and the source excerpt does not offer independent evidence about what those friends were feeling.
For wider context, the report refers to research by Spencer D. Kelly, a psychology professor at Colgate University, and his team, saying that nonverbal actions can play a role in adults’ moment-to-moment processing of language. It also cites Charles Darwin’s writing on the expression of emotion. These references support the broad idea that bodily expression and communication can interact; they do not, in the material supplied, validate a one-to-one reading of specific gestures.
The article’s central practical suggestion is to pay attention when words and apparent physical comfort seem not to match, then check the impression with the person. It frames that step as a way to show consideration, particularly with friends, partners, children or colleagues. The source does not set out a formal method for determining whether a reading is accurate.
““Hey, I might be wrong, but it seems like…””
— Janine Driver, as quoted in The Good Trade report
What Gestures Can’t Confirm
The supplied material does not show that eye blocking, shrugging or lip pressing has a single, dependable meaning. It offers interpretations attributed to authors and behavioral commentators, but provides no details about a study testing those specific readings, their accuracy or how often they apply. A gesture may reflect a person’s habits, circumstances or physical comfort, among other possibilities.
The excerpt also ends partway through its discussion of lip locking. Its full explanation, the report’s publication date and the cited research’s methods are not included in the supplied material. Readers should treat the interpretations as suggestions to check with the person, not as confirmed findings about what that person feels.
Ask Before Drawing Conclusions
The report recommends responding to a possible cue with a gentle question, offering more time, or making clear that the person does not have to continue. If someone appears uncomfortable, a listener can pause and ask whether they would prefer to stop or return to the subject later. The next step depends on the person’s answer, which should take precedence over an observer’s interpretation of their posture or expression.
The source material does not identify a forthcoming study, publication or other scheduled development. For readers applying the advice, the practical test is whether a check-in helps the conversation feel more open and respectful, while leaving the other person free to correct the impression or keep their thoughts private.
Key Questions
What body language cues does the report discuss?
It discusses eye blocking, shoulder shrugging and lip locking. The supplied excerpt describes the first two in some detail but cuts off before giving the full explanation of lip locking.
Does looking away prove someone is hiding something?
No. The report presents looking away and related behaviors as possible signs of discomfort or overwhelm. The material supplied does not show that these cues prove a particular feeling or motive.
How does the article suggest responding to a possible cue?
It suggests making a tentative observation, such as “Hey, I might be wrong, but it seems like…,” and giving the person room to respond, pause or decline to share.
Does the source establish how accurate these interpretations are?
No accuracy figures or study methods for the specific gestures appear in the supplied excerpt. The interpretations should be treated as prompts for conversation rather than established rules.
Source: rss
