Welcome,
You belong here.
As an artist,
I have spent over 25 years walking onto stages,
Onto sets,
And into rooms charged with expectation.
I have done this work,
And this meditation is for the part of you that knows,
Somewhere deep beneath the noise,
That you were built for this.
And this is also for the part of you that is shaking.
Both of those parts belong to you,
And both are welcome.
This practice is here to bring you home to yourself before you walk through any door.
It is the one I use every single time to guide myself through the anxiety and fear that can come up when we put ourselves out there.
And now I am going to walk you through it as well.
So wherever you are,
Whatever is ahead of you,
Be here with me now.
Let us begin by closing your eyes.
We are going to start by letting go,
Because you arrived here all ready full.
So before we take anything in,
Let us set something down and exhale everything out right now.
Good.
Now let us begin with five deep breaths.
I will count you through.
One.
Inhale through your nose,
Fill your belly,
Your ribs,
Your chest,
And sip a little more air at the top,
And then hold.
And exhale through your mouth.
Good job.
Two.
Inhale through your nose,
This time filling your back body.
And take another small sip of air at the top,
And now hold.
And exhale through your mouth.
Three.
Inhaling through your nose,
Bringing the breath all the way down to the base of your spine,
Sip a little bit more air at the top,
And hold.
And slowly exhale through your mouth.
Four.
Inhaling through the nose,
Taking another sip of air at the top before holding for a moment.
And exhale through your mouth.
Five.
Inhale through your nose,
Taking one more sip of air at the top before holding.
And exhale through your mouth,
Releasing any lingering tension.
Nicely done.
Now bring your attention all the way down to the soles of your feet,
And just let them soften.
Breathe here for a moment.
Now gently bring your awareness up into your ankles,
Into your calves and your shins,
And into your knees.
Just breathe here.
Allow yourself to soften and settle.
Continuing up into your sit bones,
Your hip flexors,
Your lower belly and your lower back.
Feel your core,
And begin to take a posture of feeling alert and supported.
As you bring your awareness into your upper back and into the space around your heart,
Stay here for a moment,
Because this is where the meaning of your message lives.
This is the place from which everything true that you have ever said was born.
So let it be wide.
Let it be warm.
Let it remember why you are here.
Continuing to bring your awareness into your upper back,
And into your shoulders.
And from your shoulders,
Let your awareness travel down into your arms,
Your elbows,
Your forearms,
Your wrists,
Your hands,
Your arms,
Your fingers.
These are the instruments of your expression.
Let them feel loose and alive.
And now bringing your awareness into your neck.
This is where your truth is shared.
This is where what lives in your heart finds its voice and moves into the world.
So let us soften here.
Let the muscles around your neck release.
And if it feels right,
Give a gentle stretch from side to side,
Forward and back,
Making space for everything you came to say and do.
Now bring your attention into your head.
Let your jaw grow heavy and soft and let your face relax.
Soften between your eyebrows and around your eyes.
Let even the smallest muscle in your face remember they do not need to hold anything right now.
Just be present to this feeling.
This is your body.
This is your home.
You are now incredibly present and are in a heightened state of awareness.
Allow yourself to feel grounded.
Gently tilt your chin up as you roll your shoulders back,
Allowing yourself to take on a posture of feeling alert and settled.
And in this place,
Know that you are connected to something far greater than yourself.
It is not your will and it is not just your effort alone that will carry you through what is ahead.
There is a force that has been with you in every room you have ever walked into,
And it will be with you in the next one as well.
You have never done this alone and you are not about to start now.
Ask your body to remember this feeling.
The steadiness in your feet,
The openness in your chest,
Calm in your mind,
The quiet power of being fully present in your own skin.
Now visualize yourself in the space you are about to walk into.
See it.
And now see yourself in the space holding exactly this feeling.
This calm,
This confidence,
This grounded.
Being the most settled,
Present version of yourself.
The one who knows who you are and remembers what you carry.
Now take one more reassuring breath,
Knowing that you've got this.
Breathing in through your nose,
Taking another little sip of air at the top before holding for a moment,
And then exhaling through your mouth.
Now here's something simple to carry with you as you move towards what is ahead.
Be curious.
As you lead up to the moment you stand before your audience,
Stay curious and explorative in your body.
Notice if any tension tries to start to creep back in,
And if it does,
Give the command to relax.
Relax your shoulders,
Relax your jaw,
Soften your face,
You got this.
These commands,
These cues are where you keep your focus,
And that focus is what keeps you present.
And when you are present,
You have access to everything you want to bring into that room.
Every word connected with deep conviction.
Every moment grounded in truth.
I send you peace,
I send you grace,
And I send you deep appreciation for taking this time to do this practice with me.
Whatever you're about to step into,
Know that you are ready.
And not because everything will go perfectly,
But because you are here in your body,
In your breath,
In your truth.
And that has always been enough.
Thank you for taking a breath with me.
Now go,
The world is waiting for what you carry.
