Take the Right Seat and Take Control of Your Career

Body language is an integral part of the human communication process. We send and receive messages through hand movements and facial expressions. In fact, words spoken in the absence non-verbal conveyance would hold little or no meaning for the person receiving the communication, if in fact, such an occurrence could even be considered communicating. By the same token, how we position ourselves and allow others to position us during business meetings and important social events changes how we perceive and are perceived by others. Sitting in the right place can change your position within the power hierarchy in subtle, but unbelievably powerful ways.

Modern business professionals look to Peter Senge's learning organization model to build their team, operating from an egalitarian viewpoint that everyone's contribution is to be touted and appreciated. Yet, modern conference and meeting rooms belie the true nature of the organization's core hierarchy. If you really want to know who's in the power positions, pay close attention to where everyone sits.

The Rectangle Table
The rectangle table is itself a revelation of the organization's core values. This style of table has two distinct positions of power--one much greater than the other. The head of the table is where the father figure has sat throughout Occidental history. It is where kings and rulers sit. At the the other end, called the foot, is where the person with the little or no power sits. Whenever possible, sit as close to the head of the table as possible, and sit to the left of the power person at the head.

The expression "right hand man" erroneously gives the impression that to be seated to the right of a power person makes us a power person by proxy. It doesn't. Senge's studies have shown that those considered 'right hand men" aren't all that powerful, and in some cases may actually be seated where they are as a way for the power person to keep an eye on them in the same manner a teacher has an unruly student sit in the front of the classroom where she can curtail his disruptions. The real place of power is to the leader's left. In American culture, the left side is considered the "heart" side. Our hearts are on the left side of our bodies, and we wear our wedding bands on our left hands. The left is considered a position of trust. If you can't sit next to the boss, sit next to the person on their left or as close as you can get. Avoid the foot of the table at all costs.

The Round Table

Many offices have a conference room with a round table. It's thought that round tables facilitate dialogue because there is no discernible position of power. This assumption is wrong. Senge and others have found that communication rarely follows the prescribed circular direction when people are sitting at a round table. Instead, the communication pattern resembles a peace sign.

From where the power person is seated, visualize a peace sign. The spot exactly opposite the power person is a weakened position, much like the foot of a rectangle table. The two angled lines of the peace sign, however, are ideal spots. When communication is happening in a circle, the power person is most likely to make eye contact with the people on either end of the imaginary peace sign, followed by those the either side of him/her. The person directly opposite will receive the least attention. Don't sit there.

When performance counts so does position. If you want power people to see you as a top performer, you have to position yourself so they can see you.