RECONNECT SESSIONS

Personal training to strengthen your connection with yourself

why train with me?

I’m an expert in embodied practice for creatives. I’ve trained designers, architects, strategists, campaigners, CEOs of non-profits, coaches, and facilitators.

I know, when you sense yourself more clearly, tune-in to your instincts, and really listen to what your body has to say, you do the best work of your life.

I want you to know that too.

What will we do together?

WE BUILD TRUST, by listening to your body’s voice, to your intuition, and what it’s trying to tell you. We spend time remembering your embodied intelligence and allowing your creativity to flow with ease.

WE CULTIVATE DEEPER KNOWING, through internal exploration of sensation known as interoception. We often override sensations in the body which are there to help us, so this is about noticing what we’ve missed.

WE BOOST CONFIDENCE, in your physical presence through exploring gesture to communicate with authenticity and impact in pressured situations like pitches, public speaking, interviews etc.

WE DEVELOP RESILIENCE, through sensory awareness so overwhelm and burnout are less of a threat. Why are so many people feeling depleted right now? Check out this recent report from McKinsey on ‘The Great Exhaustion’.

what is the CReative renewal offer?

• one-to-one embodied practice programme

• 6 (min) to 12 (max) online sessions of somatic exploration

• working to your schedule

• strengthening your creative connection

• cultivating trust in yourself

• exploring your current questions

• refreshing your energy

• building a toolkit to process overwhelm

• accountability & evaluation of your learning

who is it for?

You’re a high-level creative (writer, designer, creative director, senior leader in industry, etc.) working to build a better future for everyone, but have become disconnected from yourself in the process.

You’ve worked hard, studied hard, built expertise, and relied almost entirely on your cognitive brain function for all of this achievement.

It’s time to strengthen your creative connection by tapping into your sensory experience of living in a human body.

You need support, but your schedule is full. This personalised training is a way to carve out space and time for yourself in flexible format.

The joy and benefit of one-to-one sessions is building a programme that works for you. You get my undivided attention.

embodiment & Creativity

Why is physical movement vital to your creativity?

Because it lies within you.

And why does that matter?

Creativity is a well spring that’s a renewable resource. A resource that is generated from inside the body.

I know so many creatives who fear that well running dry. The pressure to generate new ideas every day is real.

As I say to my clients: “Stop plucking ideas out of the air.”

Come back to yourself. Go inside. Your job is too important to let your creative spark die.

Like your creativity, movement is generated from inside yourself.

It’s vital to keep in touch with that internal driver.

Movement & creativity are deeply intertwined - helping you process, generate, and refresh your ideas.

the science bit

READ: A 2012 Stanford study found, “Across three experiments, fluid arm movement led to enhanced creativity in three domains: creative generation, cognitive flexibility, and remote associations.”

WATCH: The philosopher Andy Clark talks about the mind-body connection, embodied cognition, and the importance of understanding how the movement in the body contributes to the generation of ideas.

LISTEN: The philosopher and ecologist David Abrams talks on the Embodiment Matters podcast about the phenomenology of “slowing down and listening deeply from within in our sensory experience.”

About Leonora

I've worked for some of the most creative designers in the world (Thomas Heatherwick, Marcel Wanders, Atelier Van Lieshout). I've taught at some of the best design schools (RCA, Goldsmiths, Bath Spa). I worked in climate change communications for over 15 years.

This is to say, I have experience working in high pressure environments, dealing with a lot of problem solving, and grappling with challenging subject matters. I continue to witness brilliant, passionate, creative people, who are motivated to make a better, safer world, driving themselves into the ground.

I’ve done it myself. In 2017, heavily depleted after 13 years of working as a designer and writer in sustainability, I took time out to replenish my health, energy, and creativity via an MFA at Trinity Laban. This is where I began to study movement, performance, and somatics - the internal experience of the body. This lead to me training as a Feldenkrais practitioner.

Since 2018, I’ve been teaching embodied practice to designers, researchers, facilitators, and innovation specialists, in both higher education and professional teams.

It is important to note: while I’ve trained in somatic modalities, am qualified to teach Awareness through Movement classes, and have experience teaching embodied practice, I am NOT a psychotherapist, nor am I trained in trauma release work. If you feel you are coping with significant trauma, I recommend you seek a specialist in that field.

lineages

I’m drawing from a range of modalities in my teaching. I am grateful to all my teachers at Trinity Laban, Independent Dance, Feldenkrais London, and Plum Village for enabling me to share this work.

In our sessions, we’ll be taking inspiration from practices and practitioners such as: Feldenkrais, Yoga, The Viewpoints Book, Laban’s Theory of Movement, Qi Gong, Augusto Boal, Proprioceptive writing, Miranda Tufnell, Somatic Experiencing.