Presence and Power Posing

This book came to me just when I needed it.  I read Presence by Amy Cuddy to prepare for a challenge where I wanted to be able to give it my all, and I found wisdom, good science, and practical applications to every day, not just the specially tricky days

The first time I heard the term flow was at a robotics completion in high school.  Flow is defined on Wikipedia as "the mental state of operation in which a person performing an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process of the activity." Woodie Flowers, the esteemed Harvard professor and co-founder of FIRST robotics typically gives a talk during the opening ceremonies of the competition.  One year he talked about really immersing yourself in what you are doing in a given moment, even during simple tasks like getting dressed in the morning.  If you normally put your right sock on first, put your left sock on instead.  He used the term flow to describe this creative, productive mind set.

Amy Cuddy, another esteemed professor, is best known for her TED talk video "Your body language shapes who you are".  Her book goes into all the concepts she talks about in the video, but it also goes into detail about (as you might guess by the title) Presence.  Amy never uses the word "flow", but presence and flow seem to be very similar concepts.  Lately at work (even before I picked up the book) I have been trying to employ the concept of flow to be more productive and have more enjoyable days.  This has mainly meant not checking my e-mail every 5 seconds, taking a few minutes to plan out what I need to do, and then go from one activity to another, while avoiding small pit-stops that halt productivity.  I've found small changes really make a difference in my mindset and productivity during the day.  There are millions of articles telling you to stop checking your e-mail all the time, and I have found this to be great advice!

The point that really stuck with me then, was the idea of taking the concept of Flow or Presence to challenges that I would have previously described as Stressful.  I never thought of using flow to overcome my anxiety, but it works beautifully.  If I am in the moment, and connecting with the situation around me, and even enjoying myself, instead of listening to the running negative commentary in my head, I have found I am able to really bring my best self to challenges.

Wonder Woman naturally power poses.

I have to talk about power posing, because I have been doing this too and find it enormously successful in day to day life and as an extra boost when needed.  Power posing is basically just about taking up a little more space.  I have been paying attention to my posture as a result of reading this book (and the yoga I have been doing -- belly in the body!).  The "biggest" power poses, like Wonder Woman, or the Victory V can be done in private for a boost.  However, I have found smaller changes in posture to have a disproportionately large effect on my mood and mindset. When I sit, I try to keep my arms and legs a little more spread. (These are subtle changes, I don't want you to imagine I am man-spreading while eating lunch.)  When I walk by someone, I just leave my arms as they are and don't try and make myself smaller, when I am waiting for the elevator, I put my hands on my hips instead of playing with my jewelry.  As a result of these small changes I really do feel more powerful in a subtle but noticeable way.

In addition to the immense practical application, this book was also very enjoyable to read.  As a scientist I was given enough experimental details to satisfy my curiosity without being bogged down in technical jargon I would not have understood.  I felt that Amy was telling a story, and she used both her own experiences as well as those of other famous people (Did you know Neil Gaiman suffered from impostor syndrome?), and she backed it up with real scientific experiments.

This was one of the most readable, enjoyable, and practical books I have ever read and I defiantly recommend it, especially if you feel like you need an extra boost or have a special challenge coming up in your life.