The Ultimate Body Language Book

form a bridge. In this posture fingers are not interlocked and the palms do not touch. The word
steepling comes from their similarity to the pointed roof of a church steeple. Rocking, might
accompany the steeple where the hands move back and forth by adding and reducing pressure between
them. The steeple can be placed low on a lap, or seen hovering slightly above the lap. Other times the
steeple is in full view of others with the elbows propped up on the table. The steepler can hold the
posture so high that they have to look through the steeple to see others. Hand steeples frequently occur
by themselves as standalone cues, and don’t require additional body language in a cluster to have
predictable meaning.
The steepler is someone that is confident, sometime overconfident, genuine, authoritative, and
particularly evaluative of others around him. Confidence, in this case, is held in the power and control
they possess and also in knowing things that other people do not, so steepling says “I have access to
hidden information (and life experience) and this is the source of my power and control over you.”
Steeplers are found carrying the gesture when around subordinates, or whenever they seem to have the
upper hand. Donald Trump performed the steeple frequently on his television show The Apprentice, in
preparation, of all things, to fire his next apprentice! His steepling was an obvious cue to the power he
had over his subordinates. This gesture is effective if you already possess power or want others to think
you do, but it is ineffective in team building, since it comes off as arrogant. It does have subconscious
manipulative properties though, such as bluffing in poker but in most cases, this gesture is only as
effective as that which can be backed up with real confidence and true access to valuable hidden
information.
Superiors will also be seen using this gesture in meetings and when giving orders and the higher the
steeple is held, the greater the arrogance it depicts. In extreme forms, the person carrying the gesture
can be seen “looking right through their hands” between the triangle formed by the pent up fingers and
the thumbs. A more subtle version is the hidden steeple of which the sender could be trying to hide or
shelter their opinion from view by keeping the steepled fingers below the table. The lower steeple is
more often used by women and when someone is listening rather than speaking. Hidden steepling
refers to hidden confidence or a desire to limit arrogance in attempt to appear more open and accepting.
The underlying meaning of the steeple is still present however, yet women should show more overt
confidence by actively mirroring or initiating steepling on their own to gain an advantage in office
situation, rather than letting their confidence fall to the way side. In all confident steepling the hands
remain stand-alone, or the elbows serve to prop the hands up from a table. When the hands are steepled,
but holding support to the head, it does not signal confidence, but rather boredom, self consciousness,
or awkwardness.