This incident took place when I was studying in class 6 or 7 at the most. We had a school bus that would come to pick us up at a designated stop. This stop was around 2 kilometres away from my house, so I had to take a Rickshaw to and from the bus stop. A Rickshaw is basically a three wheeler vehicle found very commonly in many villages and towns of India. The front resembles a bicycle, whereas the rare part consists of two wheels and a seat on which two people could be seated at once. This passenger seat also has a shade on top of it to protect the passengers from getting wet in case of rain or to protect them from the direct sunlight. Since my timings were fixed, many times I would find the same vehicle that I had travelled in the previous day.

During a few of such trips, I began to observe a particular Rickshaw driver always waiting for me, and he would always place his vehicle such that he would be the first one I would cross. Initially, I didn’t pay any heed to it, thinking it just to be a coincidence. It started bothering me when I started observing him waiting for me when I would get back from school as well. I would even observe him refuse a few other passengers who would ask for his service.

Slowly, it began to give me the creeps. There was something about his behaviour that made me feel on edge. So one such day, I decided to take a different Rickshaw when I got back from school, even though I had seen him waiting for me. I was flabbergasted to see him cycle his empty Rickshaw at full speed and overtake the one I was sitting in. He didn’t stop though, and just drafted past me. I was just trying to take in what had just happened when I saw him waiting a few steps from my house. He was standing on the road looking intently as my Rickshaw drew closer, and his forehead was creased. Just then, as my Rickshaw passed him, he kicked a small stone in my direction. It thankfully didn’t hit the Rickshaw or me, but it was enough to convey his anger. I was dead scared and raced inside my house as soon as I reached and told my parents all about it. They then filed a police complaint of the same, and thankfully, that was the last I saw of him.

Though he had never said a single word to me ever, his actions and body language were enough to scare me to death. It was sufficient to warn me about some unknown harm.

…

You are on a first date with some guy you met on maybe say a dating site. You place your order, and you start talking. He keeps nodding while you speak, but you can feel that he isn’t completely into the conversation. You can notice him fidgeting with his fingers or taping his feet, or even notice his eyes darting elsewhere every now and then. Would you want to go on a second date with this person?

He may have said all the right things throughout the date, but his actions did not match his words. Though he tried to show you that he is interested, his actions gave him away. That’s how important actions are. Just his actions made you realize that he isn’t the one for you.

Why is body language so important? Why does an interviewer always keep a keen eye on your body language and not just on your answers? It is because your body doesn’t lie. You may unknowingly do something that may directly contradict the answer that you give to a question. By observing your body language, an interviewer can figure out how much truth is being spoken. A lot can be judged about a person by just observing his body language.

Words are often compared to a sword. It’s that deep a wound words can inflict. But, your actions are no less. Just like words, actions can hurt a person equally. By action, I don’t mean physically hurting a person; it is rather your body language and your facial expression which can also hurt a person to unknown levels.

Let’s try to recall about a time when our parents may have asked us regarding any basic functionality of a smartphone. We may not have said anything to them directly, but more often than not, we may think it to be such a silly question and even wonder how they could not have known this. While we don’t say anything verbally, our body does react to our thoughts. We may, unknowingly, display our dislike through our body language or by our facial expression; for example, as simple an action as rolling our eye. This action, though, makes it abundantly clear to the other person what we are thinking.

We need to be more mindful of our actions near kids because they can sense it much more than grown-ups. When a child is hurt by someone’s actions, it may leave a wound on its heart for a lifetime, a wound that will never heal. A simple action may have drastic effects on a child, and it may mould its entire future differently. Before a child is able to speak, it communicates only through actions. A child is always most comfortable with someone it feels safe and loved.

When we feel extreme anger towards our child, sometimes along with scolding, we may jerk them a little, not exactly hard enough to cause them pain but to show our disapproval. We may not realise, but more than the scolding, this action is what hurts them more. It makes them feel unwanted and unloved. This is something we should never do. No matter how angry we may be, we shouldn’t let a child ever feel that it’s not loved because that hurt is too brutal for the tiny soul. We should explain it what was wrong, but in a loving way.

Love can make a child understand its mistake faster than hurting them or scolding them ever will. After all, that’s why they are called children. They need to be taught what’s right and wrong in a loving way and not by anger. Because, love is the most beautiful language which we can used to communicate our thoughts; not just with a child, but with anyone.

What we can do to help ourselves to be more mindful of our actions is that we can try to understand the various aspects of body language. There are several books and trainings that we may undergo to understand the concept of body language better. It is one of the most important soft skills that we may gift ourselves, which will help us in all aspects of our lives. It will help you personally as well as professionally.

One of the best quotes that I have come across that explains the importance of actions over words goes as follows: