I suspect that one reason physical wisdom is so often overlooked is that as humans have evolved, the primal role of the body (acquiring safety, food and shelter) has increasingly been usurped by intellectual (IQ), emotional (EQ) and spiritual pursuits. These days the body’s vast intelligence (PQ) has been reduced to a vehicle of convenience, transporting those other pursuits around. What if the physical realm of experience were to get in the front seat with the intellect and emotions? How might we communicate, educate ourselves and our children? What sort of new dynamic might unfold?

This integration of mind, body, emotions, and spirit is an idea that is gaining traction in the world of leadership development. “Somatics refers to the art and science of living in the human body; to the inherent and inescapable unity of thinking, feeling, and acting in the world. In somatics, we view the body as the place where sensation [perception], emotion, and cognitive interpretation of events all meet and interact to form one’s moment-to-moment experience of life” (Blake, 2009). Where is it easier to engage somatically? More difficult to engage somatically? Why do you think that is?