Embodiment – What 20 Years of Dancing Taught Me About Leadership

As a child, movement was my freedom. Ballet at the state conservatory wasn’t just a discipline—it was how I told the truth without words.

But like many, I traded that truth for stability. I pursued academic success, earned a PhD, and built a thriving international corporate career. Years later, Argentinian tango found me, reigniting a part of myself I had long silenced.

Driven by ambition and a mind trained in data, I kept chasing external validation. On the surface, everything shone. Inside, I was burnt out—suffering from chronic pain, sleeplessness, disconnection, and loss of joy.

The sabbatical that followed was more than a break, it rewrote my truth. Unable to dance due to pain and tension, while grieving the loss of what I loved most, I suffered. In my search for healing, I discovered somatics — the body-mind connection — marking the start of a lifelong path.

Over years of practice, study, and reflection, I returned—not to who I was before, but to a truer, embodied self. Tango has remained a guiding force, reminding me: my Body never lies. She always knows the way—if I dare to listen.

Here is a recent example:

At a senior leadership convention, I stood up, physically and emotionally, to voice a strong perspective. I felt grounded, standing on my feet, facing the audience with an open chest and arms, believing in my cause. Ready to share and receive. But the pushback hit hard. Though composed, my body reacted: tightness, chills, unease.

In the following days, especially when I was dancing, I observed familiar anxiety signs emerge: racing heart, shallow breath, and a posture I recognised—leaning overly forward, tiptoing, causing imbalance both for myself and my dance partner. The same posture I adopt when seeking approval, fearing exclusion, or feeling unsafe.

That awareness became a turning point. I paused, breathed, brought my body to the neutral position through centring, and recalibrated. As I realigned my posture and breath, the anxiety and tension faded. I repeated this as long as my Body felt the need during the next weeks. I reclaimed clarity and calm—not just in that moment, but in meetings and boardrooms to come.

Embodied leadership isn’t about suppressing emotion—it’s about tuning into the wisdom of our bodies. Posture, breath, and presence hold the truth before our Mind can speak it. And when we learn to listen, we lead with authenticity and freedom.