The subtle felt sense of being grounded both connects us to the ground of life & allows us to fully inhabit our physical bodies. Grounding is the base access point into presence, feeling safe in the world & empowered in our body.
Amy Cuddy, Harvard Social Psychologist best known for her second most viewed TED-Talk of all time “Your Body Language Shapes who you are” confirms the science of grounding through power-posing, which induces physiological changes in our bodies that have us look & feel more confident & relaxed after just 2 minutes of doing a grounding power-pose. She notes that many animals do power-posing instinctually, as do congenitally blind people when they’re victorious in events—even when they have never seen it or been taught to do it. Cuddy & fellow researchers found that after a mere 2-minute pose, the testosterone (confidence hormone) levels of the power posers rose 20% while the cortisol (stress hormone) levels reduced sharply. So by taking a few minutes to do a grounding power pose, participants subjectively felt more confident & less stressed but this was also objectively confirmed by internal hormonal changes via medical lab testing.
Not only does science confirm grounding power-posing has us feel more confident, stable & relaxed, but thousands of humans across the world in a whole spectrum of professions have gratefully written Cuddy inspiring testimonials about how they did a grounding power-pose before a crucial conversation, job interview, job promotion request, negotiation, first date, conflict, etc. & how much it changed positively enhanced their state & how well the interaction went when they felt more confident.
Our body is our literally our felt sense of “home” & the most important base for presence—a requirement that if not met limits our sense of relaxation, safety, confidence & empowerment. Train your nervous system to feel grounded all throughout your life, at work, in conversation, in conflict, waiting in line, standing, sitting, etc. Start with doing a 2 minute power-pose at least once per day—ideally in the morning to set the tone for your day.
To the relaxed confidence of Presence,
Johnny
