Publisher's Synopsis
Warning This is an independent addition to When Breath Becomes Air, meant to enhance your experience of the original book. If you have not yet bought the original copy, make sure to purchase it before buying this unofficial summary from aBookaDay. Amy Cuddy is known worldwide for her 2012 TED talk titled "Your Body Language Shapes Who You Are," which remains one of the most-viewed TED talks to date. The material from her talk is part of a larger body of her research on body language which reveals that it is possible to change how we perceive ourselves, how others perceive us, and even our own body chemistry by simply altering our body positions from ones of powerlessness to ones of power and presence. From this research was born Cuddy's book, Presence. Cuddy is a social psychologist and professor at Harvard Business School. Her research focuses on nonverbal behavior and its influence and has been published in some of the most respected academic journals as well as other major publications including The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. In Presence Cuddy teaches readers about power, body language, and the state of presence. Most people experience high-stress, high-stakes situations in their lives. In these circumstances, when we most need to be confident and capable, we most often feel inadequate and powerless. By understanding how to achieve a state of presence, we can alter our behavior and, as a result, the outcome of these challenging situations. Cuddy teaches readers how to access our own personal power and achieve what she calls "presence" - a state in which we experience comfortable confidence and worry less about how others perceive us and more about how we perceive ourselves. While the techniques and tools necessary to achieve presence are somewhat complex, they are also practical, simple to execute, and accessible to anyone. We already possess the basic tools we need - such as breathing - to nudge ourselves slowly closer to becoming our most authentic, most confident selves. Cuddy's work is thorough, passionate, and accessible to anyone. Cuddy shares her own personal experiences as well as numerous stories of individuals - everyday people from all walks of life and all areas of the globe - who have learned to approach the most challenging situations in life with confidence instead of fear, emerging victorious and satisfied. Available on PC, Mac, iphone, android, tablet or Kindle device. (c) 2016 All Rights Reserved