Neuroscience and the Connection to Sustained Excellence

Catalog description

Recent work on human performance is beginning to unravel biological, neurobiological and psychological factors that separate the best performers from the rest, providing rich insights into how we all can (re)wire our mind and body for manifesting sustained excellence. Offered in the spirit of a retreat/workshop, the thrust of this course is two-fold. First, expose students to neurobiological frameworks, serving as scaffolding for appreciating the importance of practices aimed toning the body and the mind such as breathing, naps, laughter, fitness, etc. for setting oneself up for peak performance. Second, give students a chance to transform their own body and mind by experimenting with various techniques such as parasympathetic breathing, micro-breaks, the I(Interrupt)-R(Relax)-R(Reframe), the Invisioning-Envisioning series of exercises, etc. Students will be encouraged to monitor their transformation, including regular measurements of their Heart Rate Variability (HRV), a key bio-marker for resilience and vibrancy that are at the core of manifesting sustained excellence.