148 I Can Read You Like a Book E
In class, I flash a picture of several people on the screen, and
after a split second, ask, “Who do you trust?” Inevitably, the person
they trust least is the one who looks the most closed. Whether it is
because of dress that is traditionally non-Western, or clothes that
cover more of the person than most Americans are accustomed to
seeing, the formula becomes: the more hidden, the less trustworthy.
Would growing up in Saudi Arabia change this? Highly likely.
Where you put your hands and how closed you sit or stand will
affect how trusted you are. I have intentionally modified my pos-
ture during a job interview to see how the interviewer would react.
The more I rounded my upper body and hid my hands—closed
signs that represent vulnerability—the more probing he became.
Energy
Energy level tells more about what is going on in the head than
the body.
The Army required a command presence during nonduty hours,
so one person was designated to sit at a desk anytime the com-
manding officer was not present. At the lower levels, the title was
CQ (charge of quarters), and higher up, SDNCO (staff duty non-
commissioned officer). During the week, this started after the duty
day and ran through the beginning of the next day. On weekends, it
was a 24-hour duty. In either case, the person was awake for more
than 24 hours. I served as CQ on the Friday before I bought my
first horse. My energy level was through the floor until I got to the
stable. I remember spending hours at the stable awake and fully
charged up. Why? The brain creates energy for the body.
