Pen Women as ‘Wonder Women’

From The Pen Woman, Spring 2018

By Dorothy Kamm, Member-at-Large (Port St. Lucie, Florida)

As dynamic, creative women, we want to retain a fresh perspective and remain challenged. We want to continue growing personally as well as professionally, and perform at our personal best. Here are tips and tools, which I coined Power Points, to improve your presence and performance so that you, too, can become the superhero Wonder Woman!

When Wonder Woman functioned as Diana Prince, who first was an Army nurse, then a military intelligence officer, she used her identity to learn of situations that would require Wonder Woman’s intervention. At pivotal moments of adventure, Wonder Woman proved to be the most competent person to tackle a crisis, whether by exercising her knowledge or her power.

So, how do we assume our rightful roles as Wonder Women? What do we need to do to activate our superhero qualities?

Power Point 1 — Superbrain Yoga

Start your day by performing superbrain yoga to increase your intelligence and help you maintain your psychological balance, for how can you function as Wonder Woman if you’re not balanced? Do an online search for “superbrain yoga” to find directions on how to perform this simple, but powerful exercise.

Power Point 2 — Mindfulness (true concentration)

Mindfulness means living in the moment by truly experiencing it, without your mind wondering. How do you achieve mindfulness? Pay attention, as did Diana Prince!

Practice standing still and observing the world around you. This can lead to recognizing opportunities so you can act upon them, as Wonder Woman did.

Power Point 3 — Presence

Presence occurs when your whole being is in tune with itself. It’s a moment-to-moment phenomenon, not a permanent mode. To be present, you must be attentive, connected, integrated, and focused.

Be a good listener. Temporarily relinquish the power of speaker and asserting yourself. Gloria Steinem said, “I don’t learn when I’m talking. I learn when I’m listening.” Let others speak first. There’s no telling what they’ll say.

Power Point 4 — Posturing (confidence)

Expanding your body language through posture, movement, and speech makes you feel more confident, more powerful, and more positive. People decide in seconds whether or not to take you seriously.

Power-pose like Wonder Woman, with your legs in a wide stance, hands on your hips and chin up — like you own the place — for five minutes daily. This will improve your self-esteem and even hours later will improve how others perceive you.

Be brave. Be amazing. Be worthy.

Stand up in front of people. Let them see you. Speak. Be heard.

In turn, don’t forget to listen, too.

Suggested Resources

Books

- - “Presence: Bringing Your Boldest Self to Your Biggest Challenges” by Amy Cuddy
  - “Year of Yes” by Shonda Rhimes
  - “Mindfulness for Beginners” by Jon Kabat-Zinn, Ph.D.
  - “Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking” by Malcolm Gladwell
  - “The Inner Game of Tennis” by W. Timothy Gallwey (a classic guide to the mental side of peak performance)

TED Talks

Search online for these talks:

- - Andy Puddicombe: All it takes is 10 mindful minutes
  - Amy Cuddy: Your body language may shape who you are
  - Shonda Rhimes: My year of saying yes to everything
  - Judson Brewer: A simple way to break a bad habit

For a selection of the best TED talks by women, go to dailyworth.com and type in the title in the search.