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7 Tell-Tale Signs A Person Is Lying To You
Liars can be the hair in your biscuit.
Lying has been one of the most hated behaviors.
Yet, most people lie.
The average American tells about 11 lies per week. And 60% of people can’t go 10 minutes without lying at least once. In fact, those that did lie told an average of three lies during a short conversation.
But why do people lie?
Well, one study finds that 37% of people who reported lying did so “to protect themselves in some way; mostly to avoid shame or embarrassment, to avoid painful emotions and to avoid being judged.”
Whatever the reason, lies hurt.
It doesn’t just destroys reputation, it ruins your relationships. It can lead to collapse of business like in the case of Enron.
We don’t just despise being lied to; we also despise having anything to do with a liar.
So, how do you know you’re not being lied to if someone is sitting across the table from you? What signals do you look for to know if someone isn’t being truthful?
It turns out that you and I both have a built-in system for detecting deception. We have pre-coded instincts to identify lies, according to a study.
However, our conscious minds frequently override this instinct, and we end up talking ourselves out of it.
Knowing how to spot a liar can save your life, business, or career from ruin.
Look for inconsistencies
The first sign a person might be lying is inconsistencies in what they’re saying.
When you listen for inconsistency, you notice what just doesn't fit.
For example, crime investigators believe that when we hear a noise, it’s a natural human reaction to look towards it.
Indeed, scientists have found that we immediately turn towards the direction of a loud sound like gunshots.
So, when someone says they didn’t hear a gunshot and didn’t turn to look, they’re probably lying because that would be inconsistent with the way people react to a loud sound.
