Mirroring is the subconscious imitation of one person by another – it could be gesture, behavioural pattern, way of dressing.
Neither party is conscious of the process.
Mimicking is the conscious imitation of one person by another. This is essentially copying.
Both are of interest.
Mirroring happens from the time we are born, we use it to gain empathy and increase connection with others.
Once we are aware of it, it further emphasises the importance of carefully “choosing” the people who you spend the most time with, as I mentioned in “changing cultures”
Because copying is a conscious process, we can be a little more intentional and also a little more distant. We can actually “choose” to imitate habits or patterns of people who are particularly successful in a certain area that we want to improve in.
When we are fortunate to spend close time with a mentor or teacher, we then have the ability to consciously copy while we are also likely subconsciously mirroring. To me, this makes intensive, experiential, in-person and extended learning situations by far the most powerful.
