How to Make Eye Contact (All You Need To Know)

Eye contact is a key part of making a connection with the person you are talking to. It is important to make eye contact when you are talking and listening to someone.

Eye contact does not have to be an intense stare, but looking at the other person for about three seconds to seven seconds at a time whilst you are talking will show you are confident with what you are saying. The other person will feel more confident in your conversation and it will be easier for them to talk with you.

How Much Eye Contact Do People Make in the 21st Century?

Most people in the Western world make eye contact around 30% to 60% of the time when engaging in conversations. This isn’t enough time to make human contact or to make the other person feel like they are connecting with you on a deeper level.

Experts recommend that eye contact should be around 70% of the time you are in conversation with someone one-on-one and 99% of the time within a group setting.

So, the question is how do you make eye contact, and how long is considered normal? We’ll take a look at that next.

How to Make Eye Contact in Any Conversation.

Eye contact starts within, it’s an inner belief of self-confidence there isn’t a magic bullet for this, however, there are some things you can do to raise your game.

First, no one is a mind-reader, they don’t know what you are thinking or feeling and can only guess.

Second, they’re just as messed up as you. They’re all wearing a mask and making it up as they go along. People who seem confident on the outside will have fears of acceptance, belonging, being seen as strong, and so on.

Third, if you come from a place of conviction and have something to say about something you believe in, it comes across in your body language and eye contact.

Knowing this, we can use the above to build confidence within ourselves and look at people with conviction and confidence.

You’re reading this for a reason and need to understand that eye contact is about confidence. I can teach you all the tricks and tips in the world, but it boils down to confidence.

How Long Should One Hold Eye Contact in a Normal Conversation?

The amount of eye contact we should make depends on the context and the culture. As a general rule, we should be making eye contact around 70% of the time.

In a conversation, we should aim to make eye contact for around 7 to 10 seconds when talking to an individual. Anything other than this can seem odd or creepy.

How Much Eye Contact Should We Use When Listening?

There are many different opinions on how much eye contact should be used when listening. Some people think that we should maintain eye contact for the entire time while others think it’s not necessary if it makes us feel uncomfortable. Both are wrong.

You should maintain eye contact for 10-13 seconds when listening to show that you are engaged in the conversation. Tilt your head to show that you are interested in the conversation. For more information, check out this article on head tilting.

The best way to figure out what works best for you is by experimenting and seeing what feels natural. This will help you build confidence within yourself and build the skills and experience needed to truly connect with others.

How Much Eye Contact Should I Make During a Presentation?

Eye contact is very important during a presentation. You should make eye contact with your audience at least 99% of the time and 1% for notes. This will help you establish a connection with the audience and keep them engaged.

But how do we do this? Well, it’s simple. Just look around the room. When you look at people, look at them in the eyes for about 3-5 seconds. That’s it. You will quickly build confidence in others and gain their trust as long as you speak with conviction and come from a place of understanding.

A rule we picked up is “One thought per look” – this is a great rule if you find the 99% rule daunting.

You should also make eye contact with the speaker when they are speaking, this will show that you are listening and interested in what they have to say. It also shows that you are being polite by paying attention to what is being said.

It is important to maintain eye contact throughout the entire presentation because it increases the credibility and trustworthiness of the speaker.

After your presentation is done, don’t look down. Keep eye contact with the audience until someone takes over or asks a question. Looking down at the end of your presentation will kill your credibility. Keeping calm and keeping consistent is our advice.

Questions and Answers

Why Do I Make Eye Contact With Everyone?

The importance of eye contact is debated among experts. Some claim that making eye contact with everyone will help you build better relationships and trust. Others say that it is a form of dominance and makes the other person feel like they are not worth your time.

Regardless of what you think about the importance of eye contact, there are many reasons why we make eye contact with people. It could be to show interest in what the other person has to say or to show empathy for their feelings.

Eye contact can also be used as a way to assert dominance, but it can also be used as a sign of submission when someone looks away or down. The thing to think about is how do you want others to feel and how you feel about why you make eye contact with everyone? Is it about power or coming from a place of fear? Only you can truly answer this question.

I Can’t Make Eye Contact During Conversation?

It is a common misconception that people who don’t make eye contact during a conversation are not interested in what others have to say.

However, this is not the case. They may be socially awkward or shy are unable to make eye contact.

A person who is socially awkward may be very interested in the other person, but they may have difficulty making eye contact because they are anxious about how they will be perceived by the other person.

How to make eye contact without feeling awkward.

It’s okay not to make eye contact at first, but you have to build confidence in order to show others that you’re interested in their conversation. Yes, it’s hard, we know. We’ve been there too. My suggestion would be to take a peek for a few seconds, smile, and let the other person know someone is in there and is interested in the conversation. Be brave. Take a risk. What’s the worst that could happen?

How Much Eye Contact Is Normal.

Eye contact is a natural form of communication that people use to convey their thoughts and feelings. It can be used to show interest, empathy, or dominance.

There are no set standards for how much eye contact is appropriate in a conversation. Eye contact varies depending on the culture and environment.

As we’ve said before, we recommend that you spend around 70% of your time conversing. Over time, this should become more natural.

How to Make Eye Contact More Often?

Eye contact is a powerful form of nonverbal communication. It can convey interest, attention, empathy, and many other emotions.

In order to make eye contact more often, you need to be mindful of the context. You want to make eye contact when it is appropriate and not when it is not appropriate. For example, if you are in an interview or meeting with your boss or a client then it would be appropriate to make eye contact when entering the room and as you start talking with them, keep eye contact around for around 7 to 10 seconds when talking around 10 seconds when listening with a head tilt.

How to Make Eye Contact When Talking?

Some people find it difficult to make eye contact when they talk, especially if they are shy or introverted. However, there are some ways that you can practice making eye contact with others as well as with yourself in the mirror:

Practice looking at someone’s eyes for a few seconds every day for a week, feel how it feels, fully understands this feeling, write this down in a diary, and build your confidence. Note what the other person did or said, and keep a log for future reference.

If you want to practice right away, then check out this YouTube clip.

How to Make Eye Contact in Interview.

When you first walk into a room or meet the interviewer for the first time look at them, use an eye flash to show you are not threatening and smile. When talking in the interview remember the rule 7 to 10 seconds eye contact and 10 – 13 second when listening with a head tilt.

How to Make Eye Contact With Strangers.

Making eye contact with strangers can be difficult in some situations, such as when you’re walking down the street and someone who looks like they might be dangerous approaches or when there’s a large group of people and it’s hard to figure out which person to look at.

However, there are some things you can do on a nonverbal level to show you are not threatening and friendly.

When making eye contact with a stranger, flash your eye brows if they do the same. If they do, you know they are not a threat and this will go unnoticed by them. It is a non-verbal way of communicating, but you now have a good data point.

How to Make Eye Contact Without Staring.

To make eye contact without staring, try looking at their forehead or the bridge of their nose. This will help you keep your eyes on them without being distracting or making them feel uncomfortable.

How to Make Eye Contact Without Being Creepy

The first and foremost thing to do is to avoid staring at someone for too long. Staring for a prolonged period can be seen as creepy and it’s not going to make eye contact less uncomfortable.

One way to make eye contact without being creepy is by making the person you are talking to feel like they are the most important person in the room. This can be done by focusing on them and not letting your gaze wander around, interrupting them when they speak, or looking away when they are talking.

Having said this, we should only make eye contact for around 7-10 seconds while talking, then look away. This is normal behaviour, and when listening, we should try to maintain eye contact for around 10 seconds and then look away. It should feel natural.

How to Make Eye Contact in Zoom Meetings

Making eye contact is one of the most basic and important aspects of any human interaction With online meetings it can be very difficult to make eye contact with someone and truly know if it is working.

However, we can do something to make it look like we are making eye contact as we talk. We need to think about looking into the camera. A simple trick is to place a sticky note with a smiley face above or below the webcam and then, when talking, look at the note. This does one of two things: it focuses our attention on the camera and reminds us to smile.

The next thing we can do is ensure the camera is at eye level with our face/eyes. We don’t want to be looking down at the camera or up as this can send different nonverbal signals. We want to keep it at a nice face-to-face level to build the idea we are making good eye contact.

How to Tell if Someone Is Looking at You on Zoom

It can be difficult to tell if someone is looking at you on zoom, but there are a few things that will help. If they are looking into the camera, this is a good indication that they are engaged with what you’re saying. If they don’t look away while you’re talking, if they’re not distracted by their phone, etc. It’s hard to answer, but in general, try and think about what you would do on the meeting to connect with them, and if they’re not doing the same, maybe they’re not paying attention to you.

Summary

How to make eye contact is not really that hard, it’s just a matter of you as an individual gaining the confidence and understanding on how to make that connection in conversation and while listening. Groups of people can be difficult to gauge and over Zoom equality is difficult. We have offered some good tips and tricks to overcome the issue of poor eye contact if you have enjoyed this article, make sure you check out more amazing tips and tricks on body language here.