Amanda Blake is author of the book Your Body Is Your Brain, and creator of the popular Body = Brain course on the neuroscience of experiential learning. In addition to teaching about the art and science of embodiment, she works with progressive leaders worldwide to help them become their best self, enjoy life more, and make a bigger contribution.
Once an internationally competitive athlete, Mandy is skilled at cultivating high performance in herself and others. She is a Master Somatic Leadership Coach and holds a degree in Human Biology from Stanford University. Currently she is pursuing a PhD at Case Western Reserve University, where she is a Research Fellow at the Fowler Center for Business as an Agent of World Benefit.
Mandy is a longtime yoga enthusiast, mountaineer, musician, and celebrator of life. When she’s not teaching people how to leverage the links between body, brain, and behavior, you can find her swing dancing with her sweetie to corny country songs, backcountry skiing in the Sierras, or learning cool ninja tricks from her nephews. Learn more at embright.org.
Session length: 45 minutes
This coaching demo is oriented to helping you see and understand how to leverage the body’s intelligence in your coaching session. We will be exploring how to co-create a meaningful, relevant embodied practice with your clients.
Amanda and Sara have worked together for many years. Sara has been a student in the Embright Body = Brain program that Mandy teaches, and she has worked with Mandy as a coach during two separate coaching engagements about three years apart.
Sara will bring a new, “live” topic to the coaching conversation – one that is relevant and real in her life today. You will have the opportunity to observe a real coaching session happening in real time. Although it is impossible to predict how any given coaching session will unfold, Mandy will pay particular attention to demonstrating how a coach can co-create a relevant embodied practice with her client. You are invited to pay attention to how Mandy seeks to understand Sara’s desired state, how she gets curious about the physicality of that desired state, and how she explores options for Sara to practice the psychophysiology of that state so that it becomes more familiar and easily accessible.
After the coaching session is complete we will debrief the key choice points for the coach as well as the body-inclusive “lens” Mandy uses to get curious about Sara’s desires and goals.
Session length: 90 minutes
Right now there’s an explosion of research about the brain and body. But our
knowledge of this vast field - not to mention our ability to put it to use - is scant at best.
In this highly experiential session, we’ll explore the neurobiology of your gut feelings and learn practical strategies to cultivate intuition in service of your own life and the lives of your clients. Come learn how to build intuitive capabilities that are as reliable and trustworthy as your intellect… and how to steer clear of those moments when your “intuition” seems to lead you astray.
Session length: 90 minutes
It’s been well established that social and emotional intelligence are vital to success and satisfaction in life. But how do you cultivate those elusive personal qualities like resilience, courage, empathy, decisiveness, emotional regulation, and the ability to resolve conflict? The answer: through experiential methods that include and involve the body.
Our brains developed to be our social and emotional sense organ, and our brains extend throughout our entire body. Thus, our emotional responses to life, leadership, and social challenges all involve the body. Helping your clients develop the social and emotional intelligence they need to live and lead effectively requires a physical, embodied approach.
Take practical steps toward better living, stronger leadership, and more powerful coaching by learning how to turn new mind-body research into applied practice.