Breathe!

Best, balanced, beautiful,  basic, barmy, buoyant but

Bashful  and even Bizarre tool

which costs nothing and is always available, except maybe …. under water!

Let me introduce you to the power of YOUR breath.

Breathing is a natural process; we don’t think about breathing. We are born with the ability to breathe.  I believe we take 20,000 breaths a day in order to live, which is a huge amount of air going in and out. The air enters in an effortless manner into our lungs and meanwhile we rush around, get busy and ignore that powerful tool within us.

Actually, when you start expressing yourselves, especially in public, because you get nervous, because the attention is on you, you need to think about the breath and use it so that it is your ally, so that it supports you.

Often when you are speaking,  you are likely to be  standing and your whole body is engaged, and you need to engage your breath very quickly so your brain gets the maximum oxygen  for maximum performance.  By taking some very long deep breaths before speaking you will calm yourself, you will be more prepared and the added  oxygen rushing into  your brain will allow you to think more clearly  and minimise your mind going blank or your body setting into freeze mode.

Although this is not new-I am not reinventing the wheel here- a lot of people don’t use it.  BE DIFFERENT,USE IT. It is free, it is simple and it is available. Under stress we centre the breath in our throat and upper body making it difficult for us to relax. You can learn very easily  to re-programme or retune our brains to use the breath to your advantage.

Simple,  fun  and effective exercise:

Do it as often as you want/can/desire

Make it a habit and you will develop a more relaxed stance on life

• Stand up and imagine you are making a speech in front of an audience
• Shake your body, roll your shoulders back and allow yourself to relax
• Take a deep long breath in through your nose and out through your mouth Most people will stiffen their shoulders at that point,  rest your hand on your chest and check your shoulders are relaxed.
• Start thinking about   You need to go down, down, down.  Imagine you are in a lift, in a skyscraper for example,  and you  and the lift is going down. It is the same with the breath, take it from the top of your nose, allow it to enter your chest, and then finally into your stomach which is where you want the air to go.   It is a long journey all the way through your body.  I call this the long deep breath.

The air should stay in your stomach for a second or two, then as you exhale you will pull your stomach in and the air will come out. It’s important not to do it too fast, you may hyperventilate!.

Do this exercise with one hand on your chest and one hand on your stomach.  You will feel the air fill your belly and then feel it being pushed out as you exhale.  Do this at least three times.  I hear you

say “But I’m just about to speak, to make a presentation, I can’t do that in front of everyone!” Of course you cannot.  But you can do it in the car, in the toilets, the lobby, anywhere you can feel calm and quiet, a little time on your own before you turn.

It does not have to be big and dramatic, it can be done discreetly, but it is one simple  secret recipe for success. Even if you are still nervous, you will  be calmer. Use the breath to your advantage.  The breath is automatic, but if you work with YOUR breath,  you will be on the road to success.

Get in touch with Helene – helenemusso.com 

Buy her book on The power of Outrageous Expression

Buy her online course : The 5 keys to unlock your public speaking 

Contact her for her latest workshops on beconfident@helenemusso.com