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Episode #4 Transcript

Embodied Leadership: The Interplay between the Mind & the Body for Wellbeing

Nicole Belica (00:00.078)

if you're just swamped with all the emails and all of a sudden you poke your head up from your desk and you're like, oh my goodness, I'm really hungry. Or, oh my goodness, I have to go to the bathroom. And you're so disembodied because you're so in your mental space that you don't even realize the basic needs and signals that your body is telling you to take care of just your general wellbeing.

 

Jessica Grossman (00:31.118)

I am, it's your go -to leadership team coach and host, Jessie here, and I'm ready to shake things up. If you're also tired of outdated forms of authority and ready to rebel against the mediocrity of leadership we see today, you might have just found your spot. So join me in unleashing this next generation of leaders by embracing being just a bit too millennial. Let's redefine this thing together.

 

Jessica Grossman (01:04.813)

Picture this, you're in a leadership role tasked with guiding your team through a tricky situation. You have the expertise, you know all the ways to motivate others and communication skills to be a successful leader. Get in the middle of the perceived chaos, how you're feeling isn't the way you show up because let's be honest, you're stressed. What do you think happens at that moment with your team?

 

you'll probably find yourself reacting in ways that aren't aligned to the moment and your values. Managing stress authentically without flooding our team is crucial as a leader, especially in today's rapidly changing last landscape where we're all feeling stress quite a lot. So this brings me to our topic today, the idea of embodied leadership. Because my clients are

 

constantly facing stress that they're navigating on a day -to -day basis. So defined by International Coaching Federation, embodied leadership is really about how others respond to and organize around our energetic and physical presence. So let's get practical for a moment. When someone speaks, are you truly listening? What does your body language convey in that moment?

 

Understanding our own tendencies and their impact on others is key to embodied leadership approach. Consider your bodily reactions to an unexpected challenge. And trust me, we face those every day all day long. How do they shape your body? Because change happens through our body influencing how we show up each day. Without that alignment, we risk reacting in ways that aren't true to the moment. And trust me, I know this from experience.

 

I mean, for me, when I'm most uncomfortable or feeling vulnerable, I actually act the opposite to what's happening in my body. Like, I put on this hard, invisible wall around me. It's my defense mechanism kicking in. But what actually happens is that I've learned that this actually hinders authentic connection, the very thing I want. I mean, I'm afraid of feeling rejected, so I reject others first by putting on

 

Jessica Grossman (03:27.15)

this act in my body. Because at the end of the day, pushing away stress or worries, it won't cut it. Authentic transparent communication requires navigating these stresses effectively, even amidst all the BS we all face. And this is really pointed out by research by psychologist James Gross, and this is some of my favorite research. He sheds light on really the hidden costs of emotional suppression.

 

It actually increases this idea of physiological arousal, which are things like increasing our heart rate. It creates psychological distress and strained relationships. Because as I said before, the interaction is perceived as inauthentic or disingenuous. Because over time, chronic suppression of emotions actually contributes to mental health issues such as depression and anxiety.

 

So no matter how skilled we are at our job, emotions, understanding our emotions and being good at navigating them is important because suppressing our emotions, sweeping them under the rug, they eventually and inevitably resurface, impacting our ability to lead in our relationships. This is why embodied learning is essential. It's about being aware of how our actions impact ourselves, our goals, and others.

 

Because too often, leadership is just about the cognitive. We forget it's actually about an embodied practice, presence, and commitment. Today, I'm thrilled to be joined by the incredible Nicole Belica, who will be sharing her insights into living in an embodied way. Nicole's journey into yoga is anything but linear, having transitioned from kind of the intensity of the tennis courts to the corporate world.

 

Now she's really found that passion in yoga. Yoking, which apparently comes from this idea of joining or connecting. And yes, I did have to ask ChatgPT as I prepared for this, because I had, didn't know what yoking was. I had heard it, but I was rather confused. So I thought of an egg I did. But apparently it's at the heart of her approach. It's really about integrating the body, mind and spirit, providing stability amongst, amidst life's most dynamic stories. Nicole.

 

Jessica Grossman (05:47.79)

is a yoga practitioner, but for me, her expertise really extends beyond that because her knowledge around the body just never ceases to amaze me. Because, I mean, if you really think about it, she's trained in prenatal yoga, doula birth work, nidra, as well as trauma informed practices. She has cold plunges, mindfulness and breathing techniques and coaching. She's a reiki master. I'd say for me, one of the reasons I've connected to Nicole so deeply,

 

is she's really found a way to turn my racing mind and everyone who knows me knows that that brain is strong and always working. It really allows me to connect what's happening in the brain into the physical world by centering the emotional, physical and cognitive needs into movement and practice. But again, due to her knowledge, I also get to like connect why we're doing these things, like what this, you know, what does this practice really do for our body? And I guess really understand it on this intellectual idea.

 

as well as actually getting to put it into practice in an embodied way.

 

Jessica Grossman (06:54.19)

So I have a very special guest here today. Many of you who know me know that this person supports most of my needs by being the most amazing bartender for me. She essentially coaches me on all things life. I call her my life guru. Uh, but in reality, what she actually does, what our real job is, she's a yoga teacher, mindfulness coach, and entrepreneur. And.

 

I'm really glad to bring this perspective, especially to the podcast. So welcome to, welcome to two millennial Nicole. Thank you so much for having me, Jessie. I'm so honored and excited to be here and chat all things life, mindfulness, yoga, and wherever this conversation takes us. So just so everyone knows that today we're going to be doing a very quick interview, but then luckily we're going to do some movement, which will be led by Nicole. And if you're not watching.

 

Doesn't matter. Nicole's that good. She's really that good that you don't even have to watch the screen. You can just listen and do the movement alongside. I talked about embodiment at the top of this podcast. In what way is embodiment important?

 

Nicole Belica

Well, when speaking to embodiment specifically, I think it's important to just make note that I'm very much coming from the lens of yoga, that being always one of my primary filters in life. And so when we talk about embodiment specifically with yoga, it's awareness and development of how we as people experience the world through our bodies. So in terms of the importance of embodiment on a regular basis, day to day,

 

If we lack embodiment, often there's like this form of disassociation in ways that that can play out really commonly in your day -to -day life is if you're just swamped with all the emails and all of a sudden you poke your head up from your desk and you're like, oh my goodness, I'm really hungry. Or, oh my goodness, I have to go to the bathroom. And you're so disembodied because you're so in your mental space that you don't even realize the basic needs.

 

Nicole Belica (09:05.806)

and signals that your body is telling you to take care of just your general well -being and your overall welfare.

 

So that's truly like the root, I think of embodiment is often we don't even realize the signals that our body is messaging, sending messages to our brain so that we can show up and exist in a way that truly just meets our basic needs. So in theory, we're just missing a huge component of being in the present moment. And if you're not in the present moment, how are you truly existing maybe in the past or the future, but you are not.

 

here in the net, which is where life is unfolding. Based on your embodiment journey, what are those key aspects that you think are critical for leaders to really embrace this idea of embodied leadership? I mean, it truly starts with modeling first and foremost, living your life in an embodied way.

 

Tuning into any sensations that your body might be feeling, whether it's hunger, having to use the restroom, or maybe it's tension that's creeping up in your shoulders, a headache, a clenching of your jaw, right? Observing those physical sensations that your body is sending you is a great way to start to anchor yourself in the present moment. And then based on the messaging that your body is sending you,

 

You then are cultivating awareness. And from that place of awareness, you can then choose to respond as opposed to react for whatever the present moment has to offer. One of my favorite all time quotes is from Victor Finkle, very famous, um, philosophists that said between stimulus and response, there is a space and in that space is our power to choose our response.

 

Nicole Belica(11:04.75)

And our response lies our growth and our freedom. And those are just kind of the many facets, the many layers of how embodiment is a leader. And then hopefully, as you model that behavior yourself, create a ripple effect into the folks that you work with and manage and lead on a day -to -day basis. 

 

Jessy Grossman

So what I'm hearing you say is the first thing that we need to do is we need to really be aware of what the signals of our body is telling us.

 

The next thing we need to do is once we are aware of that means that we can respond before we get to the point where our body then is telling us something we probably don't want to hear. And so if we just wait, if we're not embodied in the moment, if we're not aware of that, we usually get to the point where it's much harder to do the things we need to do every day.

 

Nicole Belica

Truly, and a lot of it comes down to nervous system regulation and stress management. After a long day of maybe emails, we come home and we don't realize that we're carrying tension in our shoulder. We're frustrated for maybe correspondence, and then maybe we're a little agitated and we say something that we don't mean to a loved one. And so we're trying to strategically be in our bodies in the present moment.

 

so that we can actually respond to whatever the situation at hand is offering, as opposed to maybe being reactive from stress that we might be carrying from our day.

 

Jessy Grossman

I do have to say you're making me very hungry right now just talking about this. 

 

Nicole Belica

Feel free to grab a snack, Jessy. But that's like a beautiful example of the interplay of the body and the mind. One of the key components of yoga is this integration to yoke union. And often, with this disassociation that can happen due to lack of embodiment,

 

Nicole Belica(13:08.174)

our minds and our bodies are not working in conjunction together. And so it was previously believed that for the most part, our brain was sending messages to our body. But now science is finding that it's truly this multi -directional highway that what our body is experiencing sends information to our brain. And then our brain processes that to then

 

again help dictate how we are living in the moment. And so when the body and the mind are truly in the same place at the same time, that's when we can show up as our most whole selves and interact in the world in a very meaningful way, whether that is in the leadership realm, work, career, or at home with your family and loved ones.

 

Jessy Grossman

 I'm not quite sure anyone's body or brain are ever in the same place in this world. And so, uh, you should, we should all try it. Just try it one day, see what happens. One of the things that used to happen, I used to go and work out and I used to work out like my shoulders, my back. And I found myself after doing like hardcore arm days and shoulder days, I felt in an enhanced stress. I just felt more stress. And I was like, but I, I'm not like,

 

I don't have stress in my life. So why, when I work out my shoulders, do I just, the next day when I'm sore there, I feel more stressed. 

 

Nicole Belica

And that sheds light on that statement that I said not too long ago on how what we're experiencing in our body also sends messaging to our brain. And so when we're carrying tension in certain areas, and obviously we all embody tension in different ways,

 

but tension in the shoulders, the chest region can most likely contribute to feelings of anxiety. And so that's where you see the interplay of the body and the mind and how that impacts your overall wellbeing.

 

Nicole Belica(15:18.062)

And this, you know, this idea of mind and body in the same place at the same time, like, it sounds so simple in theory, but in practicality with all the demands of life, like truly, it's a constant practice, even for myself. I know that one of the things that I do whenever I'm feeling a little overwhelmed, I take a glance down at my feet, just to remind myself like this is where I am in this moment. Really? Yeah.

 

This is where I am right now. Look down at my feet and this is where I'm standing.

 

Jessy Grosman

I love that. It's such an easy practice. Is there any other ways or mechanisms that people can put this into practice besides looking at their feet? Some people might have a strong reaction to their feet. 

 

Nicole Belica

Um, fair. Um, deep breaths are another great way to, um, even not only anchor yourself in the present moment, but also shift your state of being because we know that the breath is very closely correlated to nervous system regulation. So those slow steady deep breaths on both the inhale, the exhale, sometimes even just placing your hands on your abdomen, your ribs to create that bit of biofeedback to really tap into your breath can be useful. Also counting the breath in terms of how our brain functions. It's impossible for our brains to count and experience worry at the same time. Which is so fascinating, right? 

 

Jessy Grossman

I mean, I've been doing a lot of counting with my children these past couple of days. And I guess it's kind of like when I, when I am counting, it's like, there's nothing else you can think about but counting. 

 

Nicole Belica

Breathing, counting, looking at your feet, you know, and different practices and different techniques work for different people. So I always say it's a bit of trial and error.

 

to see what works for you in terms of just creating sensation in your body to help bring you into the here, the now. You know, cold therapy is a big thing right now.

 

Jessy Grossman

 I think if people want me to bring Nicole back for cold therapy, I think she could do probably 10 episodes on that one.

 

Nicole Belica (17:46.766)

 I'm fortunate enough where I have, I can never say it properly, but I have rhinoids and so my hands are always cold and you know, there's this phenomenon that they call divers reflex, where if you place something cold on your chest, your neck, that automatically starts to slow down your nervous system, bringing you more into that parasympathetic place. So whenever I'm feeling super anxious, I just take my ice cold hands and I place them on the back of my neck and my chest to tap into that divers reflex, the physiological response that my body gives me to then start to slow down. So like I said, there's different techniques for everyone.

 

Jessy Grossman

So I want to throw a scenario out at you because this is something that my clients face all the time as leaders, but you're stuck in a spot where you have so much contextual pressure on you. So either, so there's, there's all these stakeholders, whether they're board members or your own managers, and they have all these expectations on you and you're absorbing all those pressures.

 

And then you're in the middle and you have all these people under you who are looking to you to guide them, to lead them, to set the vision, but also care for them and solve their problems. And a lot of their stress comes back up at you. What's happening to that person without them really knowing?

 

Nicole Belica

So those are what we would deem stressors, right? And we all manage and carry stress in different ways. And I think it's important to just acknowledge that when I talk about stress, it's in a very neutral way based on our conversation and truly coming down to nervous system regulation. And we know that long -term chronic stress can have very detrimental impacts on our overall well -being and our health. And so tapping into how your body is carrying stress, to then find different tools to move through that stress because we can't just think our way through it because our bodies are actually carrying that stress. So we need to move through that stress in some way, shape or form, whether you go on your stationary bike or you do different breathing techniques. There's so many different ways to, to work through this physical charge that your body is experiencing due to stressors in your life. It's just a matter of a identifying how that's showing up for you and then how you can physically move through it because it extends beyond just thinking your way through it. 

 

Jessy Grossman

I really want to highlight this point. We're all so used to just thinking our way through things and I think so many people come.

 

into my space and they ask me, how do I not have stress? It's really a very common question I get. And again, why I think me and you, people wonder or curious, why would I have, you know, a yogi, yoga practitioner onto the podcast? The stress is so integral to the work I do with my clients. And a lot of the ways that I work with people on stress is the thinking part of it, right? We do a lot of, we do a lot of work on reappraisal which is a really wonderful mechanism to help navigate stress, psychological distancing, all wonderful ways. But I think that what's missing when I work with my clients is also this idea that stress is living in the body and we still need to physically work our way through. Guess who's coming into the picture right now.

 

I love it. Just so everyone's aware, all my listeners, if you're listening to this, my dog just walked in and whenever I'm doing yoga with Nicole, Lulu always has to make an entrance. So why would this be any different? And now she's going to sit at the door and whine. 

 

Nicole Belica

It's the Lulu knows whenever I'm around. I was going to have her say this is a good way to relieve stress, right? Petting your dog? True. Yeah. And that's like another way, like you're doing a physical activity and there's a lot of science that supports, you know, petting your animals, whether it's dog, cat, whatever it might be, that's a way to help manage stress. Like I think this idea of removing stress from our lives is somewhat of a false concept as there are constantly stressors, but it's just a matter of am I responding to the stressor in an appropriate way?

 

Jessica Grossman (22:32.302)

Exactly. One of the things that was important to me when I was learning about stress was one, just what stress is, which is stressor plus a physiological reaction equals stress, right? We perceive threat. I know some people don't like the idea of threat, but threat is just we perceive that something's getting in the way of our goal. So it could be even a small goal of like, I need to get this task done. Someone messages you with Oh, hey, can you write this email first? Like that is that's that's a stressor. That's that's a perceived threat to the goal of you finishing whatever task. So that might be your perceived threat. Then your body has a physiological response to that perception and then that stress. And like you said, there's no there's not good. There's this idea of you stress, which is like good stress. But as you said, like it's neutral because there's it there's stress.

 

isn't good or bad, it is a physiological response. It is our body talking to us and giving us information and data. 

 

Nicole Belica

And if we don't listen to those messages that our body sends us, then that's when we have these long -term physiological chronic effects on our body that results in that illness. 

 

Jessy Grossman

And the more you try to push it away, like you said, that's the dissociation. And you might...

It might for a while, you might think you're not feeling it, but it's there. It's going to wait to come out. And I've had clients who tell me who have, who are dealing with an extreme amount of stress and how was your week? And they said, I, I, I just started crying and these are highly resilient people. I just started crying. I couldn't stop crying at uncontrollable crying. And that was the way in which their stress was coming out. Yeah.

 

Nicole Belica

And, you know, sometimes it's unpredictable. If, you know, we just disassociate and detach ourselves so much that at some point we don't know how that truly is going to come forward and manifest for us in our bodies. And, you know, the hope is that it's not too little too late once we actually do start to address whatever is coming forward.

 

Jessica Grossman (24:53.742)

Yes. And so this is exactly why I want Nicole on the show. When we think about the next generation of leaders, you know, obviously I really believe that it's up to us to set an example that the thinking part is great and I can do a whole episode on reappraisal and psychological distancing. And those are wonderful techniques, but sometimes we can't think our way through it and we need to balance that out with the movement.

 

So rather than just having Nicole tell us or talk us through some of the ways that we can move our body in order to move stress out, I thought it was really important for us to just actually be able to practice this together.

 

Nicole Belica (25:41.966)

Following it back to what I mentioned, one of my favorite techniques to anchor myself in the moment is to check in with my feet. So whether you're still seated at your desk or Jessy mentioned walking, or if you're standing, take that moment to glance down at your feet. And I'm standing in this moment. If you are yourself standing, maybe start to integrate a heel raise. You can raise one heel at a time. Jesse, you're seated. Yeah, point a flex of your toes.

 

If you're in a chair and seated, point and flex your toes, a few circles through your ankle, two or three one direction, two or three the other. And I particularly like working with the feet and checking in with the feet is because geographically speaking, when you're looking at the anatomy of your body, your feet are literally in the exact opposite direction of your head. And since we tend to live so much in our head space, like literally going the complete opposite way to find,

 

where you are in this moment. So again, seated, standing, start to point and flex your feet, lift a circle through your ankles. Love that, Jessie. I'm watching you at home kind of balance on one leg and talk about balance, right? That requires so much of your attention. I know I'm getting a few cracks and pops over here as well. Okay.

 

So eventually standing tall and proud, feet underneath your hips. If you are on a chair seated, a firm press down through your sit bones. And taking one more glance at your feet, just that reminder that this is where I am in this moment.

 

And then from your feet, start to make a scan of your body moving up through your calves, your shins, your knees, your thighs, hips, your torso, front and back, shoulders down to your fingertips, even noticing what's happening in the features of your face, all the way up to the top of your head. And then truly just taking stock inventory of anything that might be coming forward. Maybe there's some warmth in your belly. If...

 

Nicole Belica (27:54.414)

Tapping into the physical sensations in your body is something that feels uncomfortable to you. Maybe your heart rate starts to pick up a little bit. Hands, right, warm, cold, tingling, the temperature, just truly anything and everything that you can take in, in terms of physical sensation that your body is experiencing.

 

Nicole Belica (28:20.302)

and it's neutral, it's non -judgmental.

 

Nicole Belica (28:26.03)

Take a big shrug of your shoulders, high up by your ears. Exhale, pull your shoulders down away from your ears. Two more of these shoulder shrugs in, how nice and high. It could be really exaggerated. Exhale, pull down from your ears. One more biggest shrug thus far. New lower on the exhale. And now reach arms high up to the sky.

 

So finding distance between your feet, your hands, whether you're seated or standing. And as we move laterally, lower your right arm down by your right side, a reach of your left arm up and over to the right. And I'm just looking for a stretch on the left side of your body. And if you went the other direction, it doesn't matter. Truly, we're just gonna balance out in a moment. But whether you're seated or standing, press your left foot or your left sit bone firmly into whatever it is touching, whether it's the chair or the ground.

 

Did I go the wrong way? Was that the remark you made? No, you got it. I mean, I think I am not nearing you, Jessie, which is why it looks like we're going opposite directions. But sometimes right and left gets confusing. Let's take it back to center and reach both arms high. Let's try the other direction. Either lower your left arm down, right arm up and over to the left or opposite of whatever you did.

 

Maybe you feel the skin stretch on the right side of your body.

 

Nicole Belica (29:57.006)

With each passing moment, maybe find just a little bit more space.

 

And return to the middle, both arms high. Let's take a twist to the right now. Your right hand can come to your low back, left hand to your outer right hip. If you're standing, it could be an open arm variation like you have going there, Jesse. If you're in a chair, you can always bring your right hand to the back of your chair, your left hand to an arm rest or whatever it might be to help leverage this twist.

 

And if you have no idea what you're supposed to be doing right now, you're doing great. I was going to say just in the right position, just turn your torso to the right and you got it. Take it back to center. Reach high and then let's go the other direction. Take your twist to the left. Whether it's that open arm variation, the left hand to your low back or your chair, right hand to your outer left thigh, hip or.

 

your arm positioning on your chair, your arm, what is it called? I don't sit in chairs very often clearly. Give yourself another breath or two, rotating, twisting to the left.

 

Nicole Belica(31:18.83)

Return to center, both arms high up to the sky. Exhale, release your arms down by your sides. Let's do that. So one more time through in conjunction with your breath. Inhale, reach your arms high up to the sky. Exhale as your side bend to the right as you lower your right arm down, left arm up and over.

 

Inhale, return to the middle or reach high. Let's go the other direction, so the left axle.

 

Inhale back to the middle. You twist to the right, exhale.


 

Return to center or reach high, inhale. Exhale, you twist to the left now.

 

Take it back to center, both arms high. Exhale, relax your arms down by your sides.

 

Just a little bit of gentle neck work. Bring your chin to your chest. Right ear towards your right shoulder. Can you allow your left shoulder to soften down away from your ear? Maybe a little shake out of your left shoulder. That might be nice too. Sometimes you don't even realize we're carrying tension. Yeah, unless you like give it a little shimmy. And then bringing your chin down towards your collarbone. Back to your chest.

 

And then go to the other side, left ear, left shoulder. Space between your right ear and shoulder, maybe a little shimmy of your right shoulder now. Check in that even your jaw is soft and flat.

 

Nicole Belica (33:02.83)

chin comes back down towards your collarbone to bring your chin to your chest and take one or two more neck rolls moving each direction. And I encourage you right as we're practicing embodiment is you take these subtle head and neck rolls side to side if there's a particular spot that offers you maybe a little bit of extra sensation, whether it's a spot that feels really good and you want to live there a little bit longer.

 

or maybe that area that just needs a little bit more care. So you want to pause there. You do that for yourself. And so even just this little movement that we did to tap into where our body is carrying stress, tension, right, however that shows up. And then that segues us right now, Jesse, into the breath. Your breath is so powerful and potent. And as we move the spine in all directions, right, side to side, laterally rotation,

 

The hope is that that can free up a little bit of space for you to breathe because the bigger you can breathe, the more that helps regulate your nervous system. So whether you prefer to continue to stand or find a seat, I'm going to invite you to bring your hands to your abdomen. Using your hands as that little bit of sensory biofeedback.

 

Lulu is making this very challenging. I can see she knows what she's doing. She's like, I know, Jesse's doing yoga. So I'm going to come hang out. So with your hands to your abdomen, see if you can breathe into your hands. Typically, when we're more in that quote unquote, stressed state, that sympathetic response, we breathe more into the chest and the shoulders. So sending your breath to your abdomen,

 

is when you can start to shift more into that state of calm, the parasympathetic.

 

Sometimes it's hard to breathe into the belly, especially because we're conditioned a lot to like pull in and up, right? So see if you can allow your abdomen to relax. And with each inhale, feeling your hands almost lift, expand outward from your center. And on your exhales, you send the breath out, your hands draw in back towards your spine. Maybe with each passing breath, you start to find,

 

a little bit more of that space and outward movement with the inhale, a broadening and then drawing inward with the exhale.

One more breath here.

And then from your abdomen, bring your hands to your rib cage. It's almost like your index fingers are looped around the front of your ribs. The webbing between your index finger and your thumb is on the sides of your body. And then your thumb loops around the back of your rib cage. So not only filling into your abdomen, but now working with the entire circumference of your rib cage. So as you inhale your index fingers, which are in front,

 

start to move forward, your thumbs start to move backward behind you, and that webbing between your index finger and your thumb starts to move outward. And maybe, I maybe have it. Yeah. Still working on it. Again, it's a practice, but as you start to work with this three -dimensional quality to your breath, you're truly filling the entire circumference of your rib basket.

 

We're not necessarily looking to be in this constant state of calm either, right? Because there are moments in our life that require action, that require more of that, right? Sympathetic, more fight, flight, charge where, oh, I do need to get to this, or I do need to, you know, run from whatever might be happening. So as you work with this three -dimensional quality, you are working with both the sympathetic and the parasympathetic.

 

so that your nervous system can respond optimally to whatever this present moment situation has to offer.

 

Nicole Belica (37:29.966)

So again, inhale you fill up front sides, back body.

 

exhale this draw in towards your center.

 

I notice as you breathe in this way if maybe there's clenching in your jaw or maybe the brow start to furrow a little bit. Extend yourself a little bit of compassion along the way as you might not be accustomed to breathing in this manner.

 

But working with your breath in this way can help optimize how you kind of work with stress as opposed to resist it and eventually relax your arms down, maybe a quick shake out of your arms, a shrug of your shoulder. So I actually felt my heart like kind of start racing when I was doing that a little bit. And that's a really interesting phenomenon that can happen if you're trying something different that you don't normally do.

 

that can create a response in your body that causes your heart rate to go up because it's not something that you're accustomed to. And you can breathe more optically to then also work with nervous system regulation and optimizing how you're managing stress in the present moment.

 

Jessica Grossman (39:06.446)

Beautiful. Thank you for the beautiful practice, Nicole. I know Lulu was invigorated by this for those who can see Lulu walking, pacing back and forth. 

 

Nicole Belica

I appreciate, I was going to say, I appreciate the courage and the openness to you and everyone else that is listening to this podcast is sometimes it feels a little different, you know, a little weird, a little woo woo quote unquote is some terminology that we utilize when it comes to different yoga and embodied techniques. So thank you all for giving it a try. 

 

Jessy Grossman

For sure. I'm a sucker for woo things and I also roll my eyes at them. And so it's just, it's a very confusing thing that I, that I hold space for. What invitation would you like to extend to our audience and what actions do you, are you encouraging them to take? 

 

Nicole Belica

So similar to what we just did in our movement, a little recap.

 

I think the simplest thing that you can do for yourself is if you notice that disruption in whatever task you're doing that might cause a tension in your body, stress in your body, take three to five slow rounds of breath. All right, and see if you can really breathe into your abdomen. Beyond that, maybe checking in with your feet, a few shrugs of your shoulders, a little shake out, just to give yourself a reset.

 

before you tackle whatever task is at hand. I don't think anyone can say they're too busy for that, which is my typical experience. Nicole, where can people find you? If you are Chicago based, I teach at a few local studios in the city of Chicago, then Yoga Garage and Midtown Athletic Club. If you are not Chicago based, I've got retreats.

 

both within the United States and internationally from Mexico to Joshua Tree to Northern Wisconsin Lake Superior and a few virtual options as well. So I think the easiest might be to just pop over to my website, which is www .nicholebelica .com. And you can find everything there. You can reach out to me there. And I truly can't wait to hear how some of these practices might come forward for you in terms of leadership and just your day -to -day lives. Thank you so much for having me. Thank you everyone for tuning in.

 

Jessica Grossman (41:41.806)

For most of my leadership coaching and consulting clients, and probably mostly myself, the aspiration is clear, embodied leadership. That deep presence that allows us to shed the weight of what ifs, changing our relationship with the stressors of life. Today, I really renewed that reminder for me of how integrated the mind, body, and emotions are, through the brain and body as a multi -directional highway, constantly communicating, influencing each other. These are the things that impact your leadership presence,

 

and thus your impact on your team and your organization. Because after all, leadership presence isn't just about what you say, do or think. It's about being attuned and being able to show up.

 

Jessica Grossman (42:27.022)

And that's a wrap for today's episode of To Millennial. If you found yourself nodding along, you know the drill. Smash that subscribe button wherever you're tuning in. And if you want a daily dose of leadership wisdom with a sidekick of quirky parent jokes, catch me on Instagram at Coach Jessy Grossman. But hey, if you're serious about leveling up yourself, your team, head over to zlncoaching .com.

 

where we have great tools, resources, and case studies that will help you unlock your potential and enhance your team's resilience and performance. Because here's the truth, when we don't invest time in building our own leadership skills and the skills of those around us, problems fester. We feel disconnected and it's just so hard to get work done. So if you need an executive coach, a sounding board, an offsite facilitator, a team consultant, get in touch. Thanks for hanging out with me on Two Millennial.

 

Until next time, stay curious, stay bold, and keep growing.

 

Jessica Grossman (43:27.662)

I don't know if I've ever told you this story, Nicole, but my favorite thing once was listening to an interview at someone at a very high up in a company and they started talking. It was like, it was asking them about wellbeing and they said they got their wellbeing by spending an extra little amount of time in the bathroom in the middle of the day. Wow. That's where our society is.

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