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Liespotting: Proven Techniques to Detect Deception Paperback – September 13, 2011
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Liespotting shows how to use the latest techniques to spot deception in work and life situations.
GET TO THE TRUTH
People--friends, family members, work colleagues, salespeople--lie to us all the time. Daily, hourly, constantly. None of us is immune, and all of us are victims. According to studies by several different researchers, most of us encounter nearly 200 lies a day.
Now there's something we can do about it. Pamela Meyer's Liespotting links three disciplines--facial recognition training, interrogation training, and a comprehensive survey of research in the field--into a specialized body of information developed specifically to help business leaders detect deception and get the information they need to successfully conduct their most important interactions and transactions.
Some of the nation's leading business executives have learned to use these methods to root out lies in high stakes situations. Liespotting for the first time brings years of knowledge--previously found only in the intelligence community, police training academies, and universities--into the corporate boardroom, the manager's meeting, the job interview, the legal proceeding, and the deal negotiation.
WHAT'S IN THE BOOK?
Learn communication secrets previously known only to a handful of scientists, interrogators and intelligence specialists.
Liespotting reveals what's hiding in plain sight in every business meeting, job interview and negotiation:
- The single most dangerous facial expression to watch out for in business & personal relationships
- 10 questions that get people to tell you anything
- A simple 5-step method for spotting and stopping the lies told in nearly every high-stakes business negotiation and interview
- Dozens of postures and facial expressions that should instantly put you on Red Alert for deception
- The telltale phrases and verbal responses that separate truthful stories from deceitful ones
- How to create a circle of advisers who will guarantee your success
- Print length256 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherSt. Martin's Griffin
- Publication dateSeptember 13, 2011
- Dimensions5.4 x 0.7 x 8.15 inches
- ISBN-100312611730
- ISBN-13978-0312611736
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Editorial Reviews
Review
“Every decision maker in your organization should read this breakthrough book. It is practical, hands-on and founded on years of research. It offers the easily accessible methods to spot and stop what has become the most insidious business cost today…deception.” ―Richard Whiteley, Best-selling author of The Customer Driven Company, Customer Centered Growth, Love the Work You're With, and The Corporate Shaman
“All businesses spend a tremendous amount of time and money trying to detect just how truthful people are. The stakes are high. Despite the fact that few of us have never studied how to objectively read people and understand the many established ways of detecting unconscious communication, we are surprised at how often we get it wrong when the whole truth is finally known. This book changes the odds, and does it in a straightforward, useful and engaging way. It's worth every minute you spend reading it.” ―Jay Walker, Founder, Priceline.com and named inventor on more than 400 U.S. patents.
From the Back Cover
Learn communication secrets previously known only to a handful of scientists, interrogators and intelligence specialists.
Liespotting reveals what's hiding in plain sight in every business meeting, job interview and negotiation:
The single most dangerous facial expression to watch out for in business & personal relationships
10 questions that get people to tell you anything
A simple 5-step method for spotting and stopping the lies told in nearly every high-stakes business negotiation and interview
Dozens of postures and facial expressions that should instantly put you on Red Alert for deception
The telltale phrases and verbal responses that separate truthful stories from deceitful ones
How to create a circle of advisers who will guarantee your success
Read Liespotting and gain access to a secret language of gestures, words, and emotions. Learn to see through any business or personal encounter, get right to the truth, and build a world of trusted, expert advisers around you.
About the Author
Product details
- Publisher : St. Martin's Griffin; 37450th edition (September 13, 2011)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 256 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0312611730
- ISBN-13 : 978-0312611736
- Item Weight : 8 ounces
- Dimensions : 5.4 x 0.7 x 8.15 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #256,437 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #148 in Communication Reference (Books)
- #1,041 in Communication & Social Skills (Books)
- #5,936 in Personal Transformation Self-Help
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Pamela Meyer is on a mission to help people take back the truth. Pamela’s TED talk, “How to Spot a Liar,” is a worldwide sensation. With over 17 million views and translated into more than 40 languages it is the 13th most-watched TED talk of all time. The talk is based on her bestselling book, Liespotting: Proven Techniques to Detect Deception.
The stunning popularity of Pamela’s TED talk and book are solid testimony to the relevance and timeliness of her valuable work. There’s a deception epidemic. And it’s gotten worse. Businesses lose an estimated 7% of annual revenue to fraud each year. Deception is serious business. According to studies by several different researchers, most of us encounter nearly 200 lies a day. It happens in person, on the phone, in email. It happens when buying, negotiating, interviewing, and interacting with colleagues, vendors, customers, friends, family, and others. In this environment it’s important to be equipped with the skills to protect yourself in your daily business and personal encounters.
Pamela brings years of knowledge – previously found only in the intelligence community, police training academies, and universities – to the effort to uncover the truth and build trust. She synthesizes her C-Suite business savvy with the critical deception detection skills she’s accumulated: advanced interviewing and interrogation techniques; facial micro-expression reading; body language interpretation; statement analysis; facial action coding systems; and behavior elicitation techniques. These techniques were developed by our national espionage, intelligence, security and law enforcement agencies over the last 75 years. They were refined by the top psychologists and psychiatrists at leading American research universities and think tanks. The result is a specialized body of information developed specifically to help business executives, managers, investment professionals, human resources specialists, lawyers, insurance professionals, corporate officers, and others detect deception and get the information they need to successfully conduct their most important interactions/transactions and build trust.
As a speaker, Pamela’s high-energy keynote talks and interactive workshops are as entertaining as they are useful – incorporating timely video and examples from the day’s headlines. She provides her audience with detailed scientific findings on which personality types lie, how deception is expressed in e-mail, on the phone, and in person, and how to detect deception through body language. She also teaches statement analysis, interviewing techniques, and interrogation, and negotiation strategy, using rich, entertaining real-life examples. She is known for keeping her audience laughing while they learn, and she presents a path toward trust that emphasizes integrity, maturity, and honesty.
Pamela’s work and her BASIC method for detecting deception have been featured in Business Week, The Atlantic, Harvard Business Review, The Wall Street Journal, CNN, The New York Post, The Washington Post, Forbes, The Huffington Post, ABC News, Portfolio, Fox Radio, Cosmopolitan, and numerous syndicated radio and television programs.
Pamela is founder and CEO of Calibrate, in Washington, D.C. which helps businesses root out lying and cut down on fraud and detect inside threats. Pamela and her team work closely with business executives to offer a blend of hard skills training, business savvy and strategic insight.
Prior to her current roles Pamela was for over 20 years an executive in the media business, starting several successful ventures and working as well as a senior executive at National Geographic, Vestron and Electronic Arts.
Pamela holds an MBA from Harvard, a master’s degree in Public Policy from Claremont Graduate School, and is a Certified Fraud Examiner.
Customer reviews
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the book informative and useful for learning body language. They describe it as an interesting, fun read that is easy to understand. The writing style is concise and straightforward. The book provides a good overview of relationships between body language and emotions. Opinions differ on how the book helps spot deception, with some finding it helpful for promoting honesty and trustworthiness while others say it helps detect deception in the workplace.
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Customers find the book informative and useful. They say it teaches many skills and references proven techniques. The information on lying is good and readable. Overall, readers find the book thought-provoking and revealing.
"...It’s well written & very informative." Read more
"...However, the author provides a simple and easy to follow guide to navigate in the obfuscated world of today...." Read more
"...her message in away that is entertaining, informative and seriously usable, with plenty of specific information about how to spot deception, and how..." Read more
"...Then the second half came. Now, it was very informative and probably useful for corporate moguls. But I felt like it belonged in a different book...." Read more
Customers find the book easy to read and engaging. They say it's well-researched, suitable for everyone, and worth the price. The first half is great and exactly what they were expecting.
"Love this book. I learned a great deal from it. I often find myself referring to it when I want to be sure if someone isn’t being honest with me...." Read more
"...In conclusion, it was an excellent, engaging book that will give you an edge in all of your social interactions ...." Read more
"...me, as a non-business person, this is the most useful and entertaining part of the book, and truly packed with useful information that will make you..." Read more
"The first half was great and exactly what I was expecting...." Read more
Customers find the book's writing clear and concise. They find it a quick read that provides useful information. The editing is also appreciated. Readers mention that the book covers body language, voice pitch, and how to detect lying.
"...It’s well written & very informative." Read more
"Lie Spotting This Book, written by Pamela Meyer is a guide to lying, and how to detect lying...." Read more
"...Meyer is a very articulate writer and does a great job at conveying her message in away that is entertaining, informative and seriously usable, with..." Read more
"...The book does become a bit rambling where the author goes into "audits". Unlike many such books, the self advertisement if any, is subtle...." Read more
Customers find the book helpful for reading body language. They say it provides an overview of relationships between body language and emotions, including facial microexpressions and word choice of deceptive people. The book includes photos of various facial cues.
"...It talked about facial micro expressions and word choice of deceptive people, and some other things you'd expect out of a book of its title...." Read more
"...The book has ten chapters like The Deception Epidemic, Reading the Face, Reading the Body, Listening to the Words. It covers these and much more...." Read more
"...easy attention keeping book as it deals with people and how to read them and their actions. Actions do speak louder than words!..." Read more
"A good overview of relationships between body language and emotions...." Read more
Customers have different views on the book's spotting deception techniques. Some find it helpful for promoting honesty and trustworthiness, and helping them appreciate and trust the right people. Others mention that their lie-spotting skills have not improved much after reading it.
"...workplace by implementing structures and polices that promote honesty and trustworthiness, and effortlessly weed out deception, liars and double-..." Read more
"...Deception may be everywhere, but it's not an overpowering evil--it can be attributed to aspects of human psychology, it can be torn down, making it..." Read more
"...It talked about facial micro expressions and word choice of deceptive people, and some other things you'd expect out of a book of its title...." Read more
"...My only criticism is that ha F the book is about lie detection and the rest is life skills: negotiation training, building a good team, etc..." Read more
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Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on February 11, 2025Love this book. I learned a great deal from it. I often find myself referring to it when I want to be sure if someone isn’t being honest with me. It’s well written & very informative.
- Reviewed in the United States on May 28, 2012Lie Spotting
This Book, written by Pamela Meyer is a guide to lying, and how to detect lying. First, the author stated that lying was innate to the animal kingdom. She explained how animals use pheromones, colouring and other tools to lure victims into their traps. As well, she stated some of her personal experiences. I was very intrigued by reading how gullible she was and how everybody could be a victim of society's fraudulent nature. As well, I was kind of nervous and a bit paranoid about everybody lying to me. This was because the author presents the reader with a plethora of statistics about why, how, and when humans lie. This made me realize just how dodgy the business world is, and how vulnerable one is on a day to day basis to a world of complicated schemes and plots. After all, "lying is intrinsic to all human beigns and is the spine of modern interactions". However, the author provides a simple and easy to follow guide to navigate in the obfuscated world of today. The complete method involves learning how to read people's movements, and words, to know when someone is lying to you. The author repeatedly says that "behind every lie there is a bit of information, the objective is not only to point out the guile". Throughout the book you get slowly attuned with the process of interrogation. I was particullarly enamored by the unimpeachable clarity with which the process was explained, with examples and applications. I would say that the central theme of the book is that everybody lies, and you can't stop it, so the best is to have some type of guidelines to detect lying in order to have an edge in life, and business.
In conclusion, it was an excellent, engaging book that will give you an edge in all of your social interactions . It is very hard to put down (at the end your hands will be a bit weary) and as soon as you do, you will be anxious to test all of the steps to becoming a successful liespotter! I would recommend this book to anyone who has good observation skills because the tip the author gives you are pretty useful, and quite fun to play with. As well if you are interested in knowing who, how, and why people lie. You wont be disillusioned. 5 STARS
- Reviewed in the United States on July 26, 2018This book should have been titled dealing with deception in the workplace because that's exactly what the book is about. The information provided mixes military, government and intelligence agencies' interrogation techniques, scientific and academic data mixed with body language and micro-facial recognition to create what Meyer calls the BASIC method, a guide to lie-proof conversations, negotiations, and interviews. She claims that the techniques provided in the book can improve detection ability by 25% to 50%. The BASIC system is a way to structuring a conversation to get to the truth; the acronym stands for:
B = Baseline behaviour, examining and comparing an individual current behaviour to what a person normally does, says or behave to compare it with what he does, says or behaves while being interviewed, interrogated or simply questioned about an issue of concern.
A = Ask for open-ended questions.
S = Study the Clusters of behaviour.
I = Intuit the gaps, or what is not being said.
C = Confirm.
The book is structured in two parts. The first contains the basic techniques to detect deception trough verbal and non-verbal clues. To me, as a non-business person, this is the most useful and entertaining part of the book, and truly packed with useful information that will make you aware of deceptive behaviours.
The second part is about creating healthy behaviour environment in the workplace by implementing structures and polices that promote honesty and trustworthiness, and effortlessly weed out deception, liars and double-faced people who play everybody to get power or money. This is very much business related. If you are a the head of a department, business, or corporation, you will find the strategies, advice and polices recommended in the book fantastic, sane and sound, it that can be said. Specially good are the items of advice on business negotiation and job interviews, which are two of the main areas where deception occurs.
Appendix I is a sort of cheat-sheet about the main points presented in the first part of the book. I truly love it because it is useful and straight to the point. This is the core of the book in a nutshell.
Appendix II is a test to check if our lie spotting skills are tuned; the solution to the questions are in the author's book website
The book is very good, well written, and clear to understand. Meyer is a very articulate writer and does a great job at conveying her message in away that is entertaining, informative and seriously usable, with plenty of specific information about how to spot deception, and how to deal with it. Liespotting tips that are spread throughout the book as short reminders of important points to remember, therefore, very helpful. Besides, photos are included to exemplify facial authentic and fake expressions; nothing like a photo to explain this sort of information.There are many real-life examples described in the book, but I thought they were useful.
Some of the questions posed and answered are: > Why do we have a deception epidemic in our culture? > Do we lie more nowadays than in the past? > Why videoconferencing isn't the solution to deciding on new business ventures? > Why old tools and devices do not work? > Why being punctual is important? > Which verbal and non verbal clues show deception? and how do you mentally process them?
Ah? Eh? What?
> Meyer says that pupil dilation can be an indication of deception and arousal, but an addict to sex would also have pupils dilated? A person occasionally using substances would have their pupils dilated, no? Does this automatically turn them into deceptive people at the workplace? Just asking!
> Some of the verbal clues that Meyer mention as signalling deception are actually things that I would say and do, honestly and sincerely, to voice my innocence!
Kindle edition
The kindle edition is well done, with notes hyper-linked back and forward. However, one of the links in the book does not work, the one directing to Artanatomy, however the site is still up just with another URL.
- Reviewed in the United States on June 20, 2013The first half was great and exactly what I was expecting. It talked about facial micro expressions and word choice of deceptive people, and some other things you'd expect out of a book of its title.
Then the second half came. Now, it was very informative and probably useful for corporate moguls. But I felt like it belonged in a different book. There was a tedious chapter on choosing a brain trust, one on why you should hire a firm to do a 'deception audit' on your company, and then countless (fictional?) anecdotes about CEOs who either were saved in the nick of time by a deception detection firm, or ended up in horrible personal circumstances because they didn't use one. Seriously, the second half was a waste of time and money for me, and it kind of ruined the book.
But if you're looking for a short section on reading body language and the like, and then tips about building your 'personal board of directors,' this very probably could be your book.
Top reviews from other countries
- KRReviewed in the United Kingdom on December 22, 2023
5.0 out of 5 stars Written in a speaking style.
Very enjoyable.
- LuluReviewed in Canada on December 19, 2019
5.0 out of 5 stars If you read people for a living, definitely some additional tools to be better at your craft!
Really interesting and a quick read. Definitely will read more than once. I love reading people and this book is fantastic for honing in or more elements to improve my ability to read people.
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Antonio RomeroReviewed in Mexico on October 24, 2019
5.0 out of 5 stars interesante
me enseño mucho y lo estoy practicando con mi trabajo y amigos
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Lino parReviewed in Italy on April 17, 2017
4.0 out of 5 stars It's way good. Livre assez complet et pas du tout compliqué.
It's easy to understand and very careful in listing details.
C'est facile à comprendre et il prend garde aux détails.
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CarlaReviewed in Brazil on August 10, 2014
4.0 out of 5 stars Alguns tópicos bastante interessantes sobre o livro
1) Os seres humanos são naturalmente mentirosos e precisam das mentiras pare ter um convívio social. Quanto mais cognitivamente avançado é o animal, melhor será sua técnica para enganar o outro. Golfinhos e primatas são muito bons nisso.
2) Um só consegue mentir quando o outro está disposto a ser enganado. Não é uma via de mão única.
3) As motivações para alguém mentir são bem variadas e o livro cita as 9 principais. Argumenta também que homens e mulheres geralmente mentem por motivos diferentes. Homens tendem a mentir para se autopromoverem, enquanto as mulheres o fazem para proteger outra pessoa.
4) Toda a linguagem deve ser observada: verbal e não-verbal (linguagem do corpo). E como essas duas linguagens se interagem é algo crucial. Exemplo: Gestos atrasados em relação ao discurso indica que a pessoa está contando uma história inventada.
5) As lembranças não funcionam de forma cronológica. Um fato que realmente aconteceu será contado com ênfase nos acontecimentos-chaves, marcantes e dificilmente seguirá a ordem real.
6) Bem mais difícil do que detectar a mentira é saber a causa desta - o Porquê da mentira.
7) Todos mentem, mas existem mentiras que podem custar dezenas de milhares de dólares e até vidas. Por isso, é importante estar atento as pistas que indicam que algo não está sendo contado de maneira verdadeira - principalmente no ambiente corporativo.
8) O livro dá vários exemplos de pessoas/empresas que foram ludibriadas e tiveram imenso prejuízo - a autora é uma dessas pessoas. Dá dicas de como montar um ambiente de trabalho que evite este tipo de problema sem criar um ambiente de paranoia.