It is a myth that guys who lie avoid eye contact. (1) They might act nervous, laugh too much, and look at the ground or sideways up at the sky to avoid meeting your gaze, but research has shown that liars will often look you straight in the eye for long periods of time while lying, trying to stare you down and get you to back off. (2) They will often scratch their nose or the lower half of their face in a subconscious move to cover up the lie.

They will try to take charge of the conversation, or try to distract you by changing the subject. You will find yourself cocking your head and squinting hard at them while watching them lie. (4) They will have big pauses in their conversation while they are thinking up more details to their story. They will give too much detail to try to cover up the lie. (5) They often repeat a question that was just asked of them, trying to buy time.

(6) The liar will have a change in the pitch of his voice, and might stammer, stutter or clear his throat a lot. (7) His body language will give him away, too. He will fidget, tap his foot or finger, appear uncomfortable, and either blush, sweat or turn pale. He will start blinking – a lot! It is said the researchers knew Bill Clinton was lying about the blue dress because his blink rate shot up to close to one hundred times a minute. (8)Blinking a lot is a very big clue.

Remember that all liars are not the same. If you have watched someone lie once, chances are they will repeat the very same pattern when lying again, so watch for the same behaviors they used the last time they were caught lying, and you will be likely to recognize the same behavior the next time they lie. People do not lie in the same ways, but people do repeat the same behavior patterns each time they lie, so look for the same patterns to promptly uncover a new lie.