COSMO CAREER ADVICE! Are You Making This 'Innocent' Mistake at Work?

​Do you take up too little space at work? Don't do that.

"Women have difficulty in taking up space," says Alfred Gerhards on www.expatica.com. "In addition women often subconsciously make themselves smaller than they really are."

The next time you're in a crowded elevator, observe the difference between how men and women stand. It's likely you'll see a woman cower in a corner for fear of taking up too much space. Sure, it's a nice-girl thing to be considerate towards others, but experts believe that taking up too little space conveys that you're timid, shy, demure, and unwilling to take risks. "The use of space is one way of making a statement about our confidence and sense of entitlement," says Frankel. "The more space you take up, the more confident you appear."

The solution: don't choose a seat at a meeting where you'll be squashed against the wall or forced to keep your elbows glued to your sides. "When giving a presentation, use the full amount of space available to you by slowly walking side to side, forward, and back," advises Frankel.