In this clip from @WDYKTBT, former Army Lieutenant Colonel Croft Edwards describes the moment his body, trained for decades to armor up and neutralize threats, walked into a room full of people dancing, smiling, and celebrating. His nervous system did exactly what it was conditioned to do. It scanned for danger. It tensed. It said no.
What happened next changed the trajectory of his entire career.
Croft went on to become an ontological coach, training leaders to use the body not as a command-and-control instrument but as a tuning fork for connection. The lesson that started in that room became his life's work: your body is the missing data layer in leadership, and until you learn to listen to it, you're leaving trust on the table.
If you've ever felt like your body was working against you in high-stakes moments, this conversation is for you. Watch the full episode for the complete framework on nervous system regulation, somatic coaching, and why the hardest person you'll ever lead is yourself.
Watch the full conversation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHN0wUhgvTM&list=PLbWfh34FP_dUcAaCrI31z00_fLdphi6b7&index=1&t=5s
What You'll Take Away From The Full Conversation:
• Why psychological safety isn't just about what you say, it's about what your body is already communicating before you open your mouth
• The body-armor story that revealed how Croft's own nervous system was treating connection as a threat
• How embodied coaching and self-leadership work together: you cannot co-regulate someone else if you haven't learned to regulate yourself first
• Why the body is, in Croft's words, "the Holy Grail in coaching and leadership"
Croft Edwards is a somatic and embodiment leadership coach who helps leaders move from command-and-control to embodied presence.
A former U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel, Croft's journey from military leadership to ontological coaching shapes his approach to psychological safety, emotional intelligence, and trauma informed leadership. He believes the body holds the intelligence most leadership development leaves untapped.
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Watch Next:
• Nervous System Regulation: Take Back Control of Your Responses with Ashley Douglas: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yim5d8FO7Oo&list=PLbWfh34FP_dUcAaCrI31z00_fLdphi6b7&index=13&t=677s
• Nervous System Regulation | Trauma-Informed Leadership with Sharon Podobnik Peterson:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XX6Hs-CQp4c&list=PLbWfh34FP_dUcAaCrI31z00_fLdphi6b7&index=3&t=1522s
• Your Voice Always Tells the Truth, Even If Your Words Don't | Barbara McAfee: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CPwnUdqKwU&list=PLbWfh34FP_dUcAaCrI31z00_fLdphi6b7&index=1&t=1021s
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In the full episode, Croft answers the following questions:
• How to create psychological safety?
• How to regulate my nervous system?
• What is embodied leadership?
• How can I be more authentic as a leader?
Resources mentioned in the episode:
• Croft’s company: https://croftandcompany.com/
• LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/croftedwards/
• Croft’s latest book: "The Liquid Accordion: A Somatic and Embodiment Primer for Coaching In, With, and Through the Body for Coaches and Leaders”
Music in this episode by Amplify Music.
What Do You Know To Be True?" is an invitation for those who are in the middle of a mid-career reinvention, attempting to pivot from the old version of you, into one that is more aligned with purpose and values, and becoming more of your possible self.
These conversations are with leaders who have been at that pivot point, who’ve navigated the messy middle, and now creating more meaning in the world through their work.
Want more info about What Do You Know To Be True?
➡️ Check out the channel: https://www.youtube.com/@WDYKTBT?sub_confirmation=1
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"What Do You Know To Be True?" is hosted by Roger Kastner, is a production of Three Blue Pens, and is recorded on the ancestral lands of the Duwamish and Suquamish people. To discover the ancestral lands of the indigenous people whose land you may be on, go to: https://native-land.ca/
Keywords
#NervousSystemRegulation #SomaticHealing #NervousSystem #PsychologicalSafety #BodyWisdom #HealingJourney #selfleadership