What should we do with our hands when we present? Let them hang loosely at our sides? Put them in our pockets? Or should we gesture? We definitely should gesture. But how exactly do we do it, and why does it even matter?
Key message of this article: Gesturing helps the audience remember more from our presentation, and it also makes it easier for us to speak smoothly and without stumbling.
If you prefer to watch a video on this topic, click below. The rest of the article continues under the video.
Most presenters stand like mannequins. Arms at their sides, eyes fixed on the slides, and when they do move, it's only to bury their hands in their pockets. As if gesturing were something to be ashamed of, something to keep under control.
That's a mistake that literally costs money.
Gestures and company valuation
Researchers from Stanford, Michigan and the University of North Carolina analysed video recordings of CEO presentations during IPO roadshows. What they found is surprising. It turned out that the more a CEO's gestures conveyed competence, the higher the final IPO valuation. Not the slide content, not the financial data. Gestures. Different hand movements translated into different share prices and, as a result, real money for the company.
But gestures are not just about first impressions. They fundamentally change how listeners process and remember what you tell them.
3 facts that shift your perspective
Fact 1. Even blind people gesture.
People who have been blind from birth have never seen someone else's gesture and had no way to learn it through observation. And yet they gesture naturally, just like sighted people.
Why? Because gestures are not learned through imitation. They are built into how we think and how we create language. The hands are directly connected to the brain's language system, so when you block them, you block thinking too.
Fact 2. Gestures improve working memory.
Research on solving mathematical problems reveals something counterintuitive: people who were allowed to gesture while explaining calculations achieved significantly better working memory scores than those who were not.
The mechanism is straightforward. Gestures offload the brain. When your hands are working, your brain has more resources available for processing complex information. Think of it like freeing up RAM by closing unnecessary browser tabs.
Fact 3. Without gestures, you speak worse.
Research shows that when presenters are told not to gesture, their speech becomes noticeably less fluent. More pauses, more errors, more "ums" and "ahs." Gestures are not decoration you can safely cut. They are fuel that helps the brain reach for the right words at the right moment. Literally.
So if you have ever watched a presenter gripping a laptop with both hands or standing with fingers interlocked, you were watching someone making their own job harder.
6 principles of effective gesturing
1. Use illustrative gestures for data.
Do not just say "sales went up." Show it with a hand moving upward. Do not just say "we have three options." Count them on your fingers. When you describe something abstract, draw it in the air: size, shape, direction.
An analysis of over 2,000 TED talks found that presenters who used illustrative gestures were rated as significantly more competent and persuasive. Doubling gesture frequency alone increased audience engagement by 5%. There is one condition though: gestures must match what you are saying. Random hand-waving does not help. It gets in the way.
2. One gesture per key point.
With every important argument, use one clear, distinctive gesture. It helps your listeners' memory. They will remember the movement and, with it, the message. One gesture, one point. Simple and effective.
3. Avoid repetitive gestures.
Rhythmic "chopping" at the air, the so-called beat gestures, can genuinely damage comprehension. In a study involving people listening in their second language, repetitive gestures caused 47% worse retention and 49% worse understanding of the material.
When the same movement accompanies every sentence, the hands lose meaning and become noise. Vary your gestures. Different points deserve different movements.
4. Do not hide your hands.
Hands in pockets or behind your back is one of the most common presenter mistakes. If you need something to hold for comfort, a remote, a pen, something small, that is fine. Hold it in one hand and keep the other free for gesturing.
When the hands are blocked, thinking is blocked too. And the body still needs to move. If you do not give it an outlet consciously, it will find one on its own: shifting weight from foot to foot, fidgeting, restless movement. That is exactly what you want to avoid.
5. Gesture inside the gesture box.
There is a natural zone for gestures: from the navel to eye level, roughly the width of an outstretched hand plus 10 to 20 centimetres on each side. Stay in that zone. Go above it and you look frantic. Go below it and you look uncertain. Stay in the middle and you look professional and natural.
6. Do not overthink it.
This is the most important principle of the six. Do not choreograph your gestures, do not practise hand movements in front of a mirror, do not try to plan every movement in advance. That leads nowhere.
Focus on having a clear, logical and engaging message, and the gestures will come naturally. You gesture in an unusual way? Do not worry about it. That may be your signature, your charm. Authenticity always beats perfection.
And remember: gestures matter, but they are never more important than what you are actually saying. Content comes first. Gestures support it.
What to do at your next presentation
At your next talk, whether it is a meeting with two people or a conference room full of them, if you are holding a laptop or a phone, put it down. Keep at least one hand free. Focus on what you want to say and let your hands do what they naturally want to do.
You will be surprised how much easier it makes everything.
And if you want to take your public speaking skills to the highest level, check out our public speaking training. During the training, we work intensively not only on gestures, but also on speaking fluently, building audience engagement, and reducing stress.
Piotr Garlej
