Think Less, Feel More
A few weeks ago, I was facilitating a workshop that was part of a women’s leadership conference at a big tech company in town.
The workshop focused on Embodied Leadership, where we explored strategies that connect mind and body for leadership development and wellbeing.
Early in the session, we were focusing on leadership presence. Oftentimes there’s the assumption that leadership presence involves projecting strength and confidence. While there are times this style of leadership presence is useful, oftentimes what’s more effective is to be authentic.
When we’re showing up in a way that’s authentic to who we are as a people, it’s easier to connect with others, build trust, have emotional intelligence, and ultimately, to influence others. That, after all, is the essence of leadership.
After unpacking why authenticity is key, a woman in the back raised her hand and asked somewhat tentatively, “How can I be authentic if I don’t know who I am?”
The room got very quiet. And in my heart, I was thrilled. Because even though I wasn’t there to lead a philosophy seminar, I was secretly hoping someone might ask this question.
After thanking this woman for her question and acknowledging its significance, I offered a suggestion she could keep in mind as she explores this question moving forward.
The suggestion was this: to listen to her body. We can all do this by taking at least a few minutes each day to think less and feel more.
You see, our bodies are constantly talking to us. They talk to us through feelings, sensations, emotions, dreams, and even chronic pain, tension, and headaches.
These messages can provide insight into our purpose, values, preferences, and intuition. And as a result, these messages can connect us with our authentic selves.
Most of the time though, our attention is focused on thinking, planning, analyzing, and ruminating. While thinking of course is necessary, it’s useful to bring our energy down from our minds and into our bodies because our bodies can be a doorway to our inner selves.
When we ignore the body’s messages, oftentimes they get louder and things go haywire.
But when we can spend a few minutes each day connecting to our feelings, this process can help us show up more authentically in our leadership and lives. It’s also the fastest way to release physical tension, chronic pain and blocked energy held in the body.
I share this with you today in case you too are looking to show up more authentically, or are looking to strengthen your leadership, sense of purpose, or wellbeing.
One place to start is by listening to your body. Think less, feel more.
While this may sound simple, most people have a difficult time quieting their minds and accessing their feelings. Or knowing what to do with the feelings they discover. I know this was the case for me.
If you’d like support with this process, I offer virtual sessions that combine leadership coaching, energy work, and somatics. It’s professional development and healing work wrapped up into a series of 6 sessions, spaced out once a week for 6 weeks.
To learn more, schedule a free consult HERE for somatic-based leadership coaching. I look forward to talking with you!
Wishing you a joyful autumn, a season that invites us to start slowing down and turning inward.
