Who is the author of Presence?

The author of Presence is Amy Cuddy.

Communication Skills

Presence Book Summary - Presence Book explained in key points

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Presence summary

Name: Presence
Rating: 4.3 (283 reviews)
Author: Amy Cuddy

Amy Cuddy

Bringing your Boldest Self to your Biggest Challenges

4.3 (283 ratings)

23 mins

Brief summary

Presence by Amy Cuddy is a science-backed book that explores how to access your authentic self and project confidence in high-pressure situations. It offers practical advice for improving your presence through body language, self-narrative, and mindfulness.

Topics

Persuasion Body Language

Table of Contents

Presence
Summary of 8 key ideas

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Key idea 1 of 8

What’s in it for me? Learn how to deliver your next presentation with poise and confidence.

For many of us, public speaking is akin to a waking nightmare. But the good news is, it doesn’t have to be! As author Amy Cuddy explains, the difference between delivering a mumbly, shaky message and a cool and confident one comes down to controlling your body and nervous system. And this isn’t as difficult as you may think.

With a handful of simple exercises, a focus on adopting good postures, and breathing techniques, these blinks show us how to turn any presentation from a boring snooze-fest into a captivating performance. With these tips, you’ll know exactly what to do the next time you’re facing a stressful situation.

In these blinks you’ll learn

why you may want to make power posing your next healthy habit;
how mastering your nervous system is only a few deep breaths away; and
why your sitting posture may have kept you from speaking up in class.

Our body conveys more about us than our words, so body language is crucial for communication.

Imagine you’re trying to put your baby to bed and ease them to sleep with a lullaby. Now, imagine you’re delivering the lullaby with wide eyes, a furrowed brow and your shoulders hunched forward. No matter how soothing your voice may be, your body language will send an aggressive message that won’t be very useful in lulling your child to sleep.

This is because our bodies sometimes express more about us than our words.

In a 2000 study at Harvard University, psychologist Nancy Etkoff ran trials that revealed just how important body language is for communication.

There were two groups of people in the study. The first group was made up of people who had aphasia, a condition where you have trouble understanding speech. The second group consisted of people with no speech comprehension difficulties.

Both groups were shown videos of people talking. Sometimes the people in the videos were telling a lie, sometimes they were telling the truth. The participants were asked to try to detect the lies from the truth.

Interestingly, the study showed that the group with aphasia was consistently better at detecting lies. Etkoff believes this is due to the fact that, since they have trouble understanding the words themselves, they pay more attention to body language than those who can understand the words. And it’s in this body language that the person’s true feelings and thoughts can be read.

As the study proved, body language is a key part of communication, since it reveals signs of our true feelings. This is worth paying attention to, especially when you’re delivering an important speech. For example, if you’re trying to deliver a motivational message, your intentions can be undercut if your body is tense and balled up since your audience will pick up on this inconsistency.

To be an effective communicator, your words should therefore match your body language. For this to happen, you need to truly believe in the message you’re delivering. In other words, you need to be authentic in your communication – and we’ll look at precisely how you can be more authentic and communicate more effectively in the blinks ahead.

It’s easy to affirm your core values, and doing so makes you more more convincing and resilient to stress.

There is no shortage of self-help books that expound upon the benefits of self-affirmations, such as repeatedly telling yourself, “Every day I get better and better,” or, “I always see the bright side of life.”

Such affirmations are superficial and rarely do much good. However, there are different kinds of affirmations, and some can be truly effective, like taking the time to affirm your core values.

Imposter syndrome is more common than you might think and you shouldn’t let it hinder you.

As you’ve probably noticed, many of the best communicators exude a certain confidence when they speak. But such confidence can prove elusive, especially if you struggle to feel a sense of self-worth.

Many of us have the feeling that we’re inadequate or undeserving of success. Or perhaps it’s the feeling that we’ll never be capable of speaking well in front of others, so why bother trying to improve?

Feeling powerless can lead to actual powerlessness, but there are remedies for this.

As a psychologist, the author, Cuddy, was once contacted by Cassidy, a woman who felt lost and powerless in life.

After talking to her, Cuddy realized what the problem was: Throughout high school and college, Cassidy had been a successful athlete, specializing in track and field. But after graduating from college, her empowering athletic life faded away, leaving her feeling helpless and uncertain.

Power and movement are intimately connected.

There are other, more physical exercises that also encourage feelings of empowerment.

Take the Haka, for example. The Haka is a dance, often performed in a group, that originates with the Maori people but has been popularized by the New Zealand rugby team, the All Blacks, who perform the dance before every match. The Haka is characterized by empowering movements like greatly expanding your chest, stomping your feet and slapping your thighs.

Our nervous system has two main modes of operation, and it is easy to activate the relaxation mode.

If you’ve ever confessed to being nervous before a big meeting or event, you may have had a friend put their hand on your shoulder and tell you, “Just relax.” This is sensible advice, since we want to avoid having tense, constricted muscles that signify powerlessness, but it’s easier said than done.

As it turns out though, knowing how to relax can indeed be easier to do once you better understand how the nervous system works.

Body language influences people in everyday life, and improving your posture is empowering.

When Cuddy teaches at Harvard Business School, she not only encourages active student participation in class, but also lets them know that such participation will factor greatly into their final grades.

Yet, even with this considerable incentive, some of her students still wouldn’t participate.

Prepare for challenges with power poses, and maintain good posture during the challenges.

As the author discovered, power poses are not only useful for feeling more confident and outgoing in life – they can also be used strategically, to prepare yourself for a challenging situation.

By striking a power pose, you can give yourself a much needed boost of relaxation, control and empowerment. This makes a power pose the perfect tool for getting yourself in the right frame of mind (and body) for whatever challenges you’re about to face.

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What is Presence about?

Presence (2016) takes a valuable look at the relationship between our mind and body, and how it can influence our psychology and ability to communicate effectively. By examining body language and postures, author Amy Cuddy reveals some simple tips that can transform the lives of shy and self-conscious people into confident powerhouses.

Presence Review

Presence (2015) by Amy Cuddy is an insightful exploration of how our physical presence has the power to shape our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Here's why this book is worth reading:

Backed by scientific research, it provides evidence on how adopting powerful body language can positively impact our confidence, performance, and overall well-being.
The book offers practical techniques and exercises that readers can apply immediately to improve their presence, communicate authentically, and connect with others on a deeper level.
Through compelling personal stories and relatable examples, Cuddy takes abstract concepts and transforms them into actionable insights, making the topic of presence engaging, relatable, and definitely not boring.

Best quote from Presence

The body says what words cannot. The body never lies. – Martha Graham, dancer

—Amy Cuddy

Who should read Presence?

Anyone wishing to up their communication skills
Anyone who wants to be more confident in life
Anyone who hasn’t yet experienced the benefits of power posing

About the Author

Amy Cuddy is an author and psychologist who teaches at the Harvard Business School. In 2012, she became world renowned for her TED Talk on the benefits of power posing. Her first major book, Presence, is a New York Times and Washington Post bestseller that has been translated into thirty languages.

Categories with Presence

Communication Skills Personal Development

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