What Gets Scanned First

Eye-tracking studies do not show one fixed social scan path for everyone. People tend to fixate on the eyes and mouth because those features carry a lot of social information, but scan patterns vary by person and situation.

The brain keeps asking: Do you seem safe? Do you seem confident? Do I want to keep listening?

Your clothing sends signals before your voice does. In studies, people tend to rate the same person as more competent in well-fitted clothes than in baggy ones. Fit matters more than brand or price tag.