The Nonverbal Group

Deception Night
Seriously, they should have paid me for this event.
The bulk of the time was spent asking invasive questions to strangers trying to figure out if they were liars. We were instructed by Blake for about 10 mins on how to tell if someone is lying. So, that you don’t need to spend the money here is the gist of the tips:
— ask invasive questions (most people asked about work and went from there)
— go to the bathroom and google them
— work in teams so you exhaust the liar
— repeat
I was hoping this would be more of a class setting rather then a mixer.

So, I took the two-​hour class on body language. Here’s the bulk of what I learned:
Body language is complicated. Sometimes you might think that someone’s body language is an indication of a certain thing, but it’s actually an indication of something else, because body language is complicated. If someone looks away from you when you’re talking to them, that could be a sign that they’re not interested in what you’re saying, but it could also be a sign of something else. If you want people to believe what you’re saying then you should say it with confidence. If you want to understand body language then it’s a good idea to spend time thinking about body language. And finally, if you really want to understand body language, well, it just so happens that this company offers a more-​expensive class to do just that.
In all fairness, there were some interesting bits of information here and there, but I still feel like basically, I paid to listen to an extended sales pitch for the other, longer class. Maybe this (short) class would be a good introduction for someone who’s just never thought much at all about the subject; if you’ve spent some time looking into the subject yourself, though, there’s very little here to be learned. Not recommended.

I took Blake’s class on body language in January 2013 and over a year later I am still trying to figure our what I learned. Basically nothing at all except never to take him ever again.
I bought a living social voucher for $ 35 I think and I think I overpaid by about $ 32. First of all I arrived late since I was visiting New York and didn’t know my way around the city very well. Blake was extremely unprofessional and attacked me right as I sat down. I was quite annoyed by this but I decided to ignore it.
I introduced myself as a professor of criminal justice visiting from Houston and he immediately went off on a little rant about how he also was a professor and had done research with returning prisoners. Then he went into some little segue about how when he didn’t like certain students in his class he would grade them more harshly. By this time all his «students» were looking at me with daggers in their eyes. Sheesh. Excuse me but you don’t know anything about me. Really all professors are the same?
Secondly there is no direction of his class. He does a little song and dance in the beginning and then he shows some videos about recording some B list research parties he has with volunteers and friends of his and analyzes their body postures and how they interact. Somewhat interesting but certainly not worth $ 35.
Finally at the end of the videos and the little talk he stands around for another hour and is like you guys have any questions or want to ask anything more? He kept doing this through out which was extremely annoying. He has no sense of direction or organizational skills at all. He may be extremely intelligent and has possibly done some legit research (very doubtful) but he presented his material and content so poorly it was a waste of time and money.
Even after a year I still look back and think. Wow I wasted 3 hours.

Well, unfortunately I haven’t had the pleasure to actually participate in one of the classes that the group offers. Seems from feedback they’re very good.
That said, as much as the guys there may be experts in the non-​verbal communication, the verbal kind leaves a lot to be desired. After having Monday’s class cancelled, same day!, (without a phone call and only via e-​mail) due to construction, they then proceeded to cancel the following day’s class due to small number of participants, which I only found out about because I replied to Monday’s cancellation and asked the question!
My feedback to them was that, in my opinion, this is simply not professional. The reply from Blake was that it was actually not professional to hold a class with too few people and anyway I am getting a credit towards the future class, which «honestly they don’t have to do anyway.» What? They don’t have to refund $ for classes they cancel? Too funny.
The good news is that Groupon understands verbal communication and the meaning of professionalism, so I’m getting my refund. Would’ve preferred to actually attend the class, but oh well.

Awesome group! Sure, some of the stuff you can teach yourself, but that’s not the same as having a great teacher walk you through it and toss in some entertainment while he’s at it. Plus, it’s not always that easy to analyze your *own* body language, so an interactive class is a lot more beneficial.
As for the reviews about him mentioning his more advanced classes? That might come across as too sales-​y to the average joe, but for professionals who can greatly benefit from the more advanced weekend classes (like lawyers and security groups), I think it’s fine to make sure everyone knows he has other classes available.
I heard they’re not going to be offering the basic classes any more, though, which is a shame, especially since he always offered free refresher courses. I hope he continues to offer more of the specialty classes instead.

I went with a groupon deal for the deception detection class. While I don’t think it’s for everyone, I got more out of it than I expected. The lecture wasn’t so structured, but a lot of information was thrown out. The exercises were engaging and interesting. I liked that it wasn’t just a gimmick. He made some good points that being more aware about nonverbal cues can help you in real life.

Earlier this week I attended the Power of Eye Contact class and loved it. I was here last year and I think Blake has only gotten better. I went into the class with a wealth of information and confidence on the subject and I still learned a lot of useful information. Do not let the bad reviews scare you. Blake has a unique way of teaching. That could be an issue for people who are hypersensitve. I know I can not wait for new classes to be released.

I took this class based on a Groupon deal in January and half a year later it still helps me with day-​to-​day non-​verbal communication. I catch myself analyzing other people’s body moves and being more aware of non-​verbal cues then I was before. What Blake has emphasized is that most of these things are indeed truly intuitive and thanks to his insight, I have given my intuition much more credit than I did before.
I had a great time during his 3-​hour-​class and I cannot understand some of the bad reviews below, unless Blake has drastically changed his method of teaching in the past few months. If I wanted to spend the money, I’d probably go on to a more advanced program but unfortunately I’m broke, so that is not an option. The class was engaged in those 3 hours of time and his teaching agenda was great. I’d recommend this class to anyone who wants to refresh their nonverbal skills or learn more about it!

So I saw the class being offered on Groupon on the subject of Body Language at $ 30 for a 3 hour course. I did my due-​diligence and checked out the reviews. Based on mostly excellent reviews, I made the decision to purchase the class. I wish I had spent my money elsewhere. I have never taken a class on this subject before, yet I didn’t learn even one new piece of information on the subject that wasn’t already commonsense to me. The 3 hour course is usually offered for $ 100 on their website, and from what I read, is an introduction to their +/​-​$ 800 full course offered on the same subject. Yes, Blake, the instructor, has a wealth of information rattling around in that bulbous brain of his-​but the structure of the class and the communication required to get those thoughts out in an orderly fashion is lacking. Please don’t get me wrong-​the guy is extremely engaging with his humor, but to walk out of the classroom and not have learned one thing that wasn’t already common sense or taught in Psychology 101 was disappointing. Within the first 15 minutes of the class Blake expressed his utter disdain for teaching «these classes,» his exact words were: «I fucking hate teaching thee classes… we won’t be doing this again.» No joke. I’d say that’s a good idea buddy. If that wasn’t a sign of what was to come, then I don’t know is. The ENTIRE three hour class consisted of the rest of the class raising their hands and asking questions throughout the 3 hours-​which he said in the beginning of the class is how he gauged what he was going to teach in that nights’ particular class. Minimal lecturing on the subject we were all there for. Unfortunately, the questions never stopped-​and he made no effort to stop them, so he could actually lecture. After 2.5 hours, we got through none of the points he wrote on the board that were brought up by the students. Anything he did teach, in the first/​last 10 minutes of the class were the basics: watching for changes in previous known behavior, eye blink rate, posture, etc-​all complete commonsense in my opinion. The class as a whole lacked structure and apparently, that’s his style, and he likes it that way. The last half hour before the class ended he had us watch a video in which he paid students to gather in a social setting at the school while being recorded so that we could study what each person was giving away about themselves based on what body clues they were giving off. The discussion was minimal and seemed to be lacking substance. Funny story though, at the end of the video discussion he actually said we would be receiving emails regarding similar studies, in which we come into the school, get videotaped in that same type of «social» setting so that he can then «study» our interactions in the future. Translation: So he can use that videotape to show to future classes just how uncomfortable our body language is. Of course our body language would be uncomfortable-you’re recording every interaction! I found this absolutely hilarious. I wouldnt say that was a controlled environment. While he didn’t push the full course on our class like some previous reviewers have mentioned, other than a couple casual mentions of it mostly toward the end of the class (which is when I think the class actually began), I think that’s because he didn’t have time to. Like I previously said-​the class was just a question and answer session the entire time. I personally took away no new information from the class. He clearly knows whatever it is he knows, and he is confident in regurgitating that information to a crowd, but to pay for the class, thinking you’re going to learn something you may be disappointed. Out of the entire 3 hour class, he only lectured for a total of +/​-​20 minutes — 10 minutes in the beginning and 10 minutes at the end of the class. In the end, it was not even worth the cost of the Groupon.
Just a little FYI-​he did say that he teaches each class differently, and that no two classes are alike. Therefore, after you purchase and take one of his classes, you can take that particular class over and over again for free-​including Groupon purchasers. I think that’s a great thing and for some people may make up for the lack of structure. You may or may not learn something new every time. =) Did I want to go through all that trouble? No. Why would I? I learned nothing new or interesting to keep me engaged in the subject the first time. In my opinion, not worth the investment in time and/​or money.

Fun class though not as informative as I hoped for. That has more to do with the subject than the instructor though since, as he mentioned himself, everything he was teaching us we could learn on our own just by paying attention to the body language of strangers, whether while on the train, at a bar, etc. I do this regularly so that’s probably why I didn’t learn much.
While I wouldn’t say it’s worth the $ 100 price tag, it certainly was worth the $ 30 I paid through Groupon. The instructor is natural and passionate in his teaching style and there’s a sort of flexibility to the class where the students sort of guide what areas the instructor focuses on depending on what they want to know. (Blake asked us what questions about body language we had, made a list of them, and then provided us with the answers.)
The Nonverbal Group offers classes that go more in-​depth, so that’s probably what you should look into if you already have a grip on the basics of body language.
Overall, it was good experience. I might take the class on deception next.

After posting my review, I received a message from Blake regarding my review explaining the evolving class structure and offering compensation for my dissatisfaction. I raise my rating simply based on good customer service.

Experience:
I started with the Groupon offer, and ended up taking all of Blake’s classes (Body Language, Deception Detected, and Dating Body Language), including an experimental study he offered for past students.
Overall:
Going to his classes and hearing his summaries of everything he’s learned on body language is definitely worth the time and the price of the classes. He’s like an endless fountain of knowledge that you just want to spend more time with so you can keep learning about such a fascinating and useful subject.
Details:
You know how in every group, you usually have that one friend who gets obsessed with a particular subject, and spends all his time on it to become an expert?
And then forever you know him as the guy who knows helicopters or understands the Civil War or who knows the precious metals market better than anyone else you know?
Blake is THAT GUY, but with Body Language (I haven’t taken Poker yet).
Blake is that really smart expert friend that you go to who’s extremely well-​studied on body language and on poker, among other things. However, the difference is that not only is he well-​read, he’s conducted his own research and can tell you what actually works and what doesn’t work.
So if you think you’ve read a book that tells you about arms being crossed, mirroring the person that you’re talking to, etc., etc., believe me, Blake has read just about all of them and he’ll tell you whether it’s bunk or not, and what the research has been on that topic.
First thing I learned from him — you have to baseline in order to see if any of these signs actually mean anything. Makes total sense, and is a basic starting point, but I’ve never seen it in the books I’ve read. I don’t want to give any more away, as I’m sure he put a lot of time and effort into creating his classes. Just go and enjoy!

I’ve taken all the classes offered by The Nonverbal Group and I can’t recommend them highly enough!
Blake is a terrific instructor, and extremely engaging. He always shares fascinating anecdotes from his personal experiences, and makes sure that no question is left unanswered.
I now feel like I have an edge in every social situation, which is well worth the price of admission.

I’ve taken both the Body Language Course and Lie Detection Course with Blake and he is a really great teacher. You can tell that he’s enthusiastic about the subject matter and it’s contagious. I plan on taking both classes again (I have a memory like a sieve). Blake keeps the class upbeat and the subject matter is really interesting and useful.

The 3 hr intro class is actually a 3 hr preview of what you COULD learn if you bought into one of the more expensive classes. It wasn’t bad but I don’t feel like I got $ 39 worth of information or entertainment out of it. I felt like that sort of thing should really be free.

Never do I ever review on Unilocal — but this is the exception. Take the Body Language Class — it will open your eyes to a whole new way of viewing the world. –Not to mention the way people view you– Not bad for a 3 hour class.
Haven’t taken the Lie Dection Course or The Dating Course that they offer, but I’ve heard amazing things about both and based on the results that I’ve gotten out of Blake’s Body Language teachings; I’ll absolutely be signing up for at least the Lie Dection Course. I’m all set with the Dating part. ;)

Its a fascinating topic and being a fan of Tim Roth’s «Lie to Me» I was completely intrigued when I saw there was a school in NY that could teach you about non-​verbal communication or body language.
Blake Eastman is a terrific instructor and runs a fun, informative and engaging class.
Its always interesting to learn new things and I’ll be much more aware of the non-​verbal messages I’m sending out as well as taking note of what others are «saying.»

When I took the body language class, I was intensely focused the whole time. The material he taught was very interesting. The instructor, Blake, definitely cleared up definitely corrected some prevalent misconceptions I had.
When you ask a question he is very helpful in answering it. After the main course have been taught we had a Q&A session. That session went way over the estimated time of class and most people stayed. I wish I could have stayed until the end of everything, but I had an event to attend to.
It was a great class to take and it will definitely open your eyes. I recommend it to everyone, especially people who are little slow in taking a hint.

I took the intro to body language class.
The instructor, Blake, will impress you with his knowledge, and ability to accurately read people’s non verbal cues. The class is very well organized, interactive, and very fun.
The material is very simple to grasp and often intuitive. I highly recommend this to anyone who wants to improve their people reading skills and improve the way they interact with people on a daily basis. You’ll be able to spot clues that give away when people are interested in each other, when someone is being deceptive, body language to convey power and confidence, and more. Take the class.

Class was informative and engaging. I would highly recommend for anyone looking at understanding visual connections for dating. I will be taking this course again just for the fact that Blake’s personality and way of teaching is different vs the normal classroom or online blog reading. Get there early and talk to Blake. He’s knowledgeable on a ton of different topics!