By Dean Newlund
Most leaders spend years honing strategy, communication, and emotional intelligence. Yet there’s a part of the body that quietly determines whether any of those skills come through when the stakes are high. It’s not a mindset trick or a productivity hack. It’s a nerve—one that begins at the base of the brain and winds through the throat, heart, diaphragm, and gut.
The vagus nerve plays a bigger role in leadership than most people ever hear about. When the vagus nerve is active, the body settles. Breathing steadies, heart rate evens out, and attention widens. You listen more fully. You pick up what’s happening in the room instead of getting trapped in your head. Pressure doesn’t rattle you in the same way. It becomes easier to respond instead of react.
When the vagus nerve is quiet, everything tightens. You rush, interrupt, push, or overcorrect. Even good ideas can land poorly when the body is bracing itself.
Understanding this system is a practical way to strengthen leadership presence—one that doesn’t rely on willpower.
Why the Vagus Nerve Matters for Leaders
People read your state before they absorb your words. A tense leader tends to create a tense room. A grounded leader creates the opposite. This isn’t about personality; it’s physiology. When your nervous system is regulated, you communicate more clearly, see situations more accurately, and handle conflict with steadier judgment.
A healthy vagus nerve gives you access to intuition, empathy, and focus—capacities that are hard to reach when your system is overloaded.
How To Activate Your Vagus Nerve: Five Things You Can Do
You don’t need long routines or specialized equipment. Small, consistent practices can reset the nervous system and enhance your overall presence.
1. Slow your breathing with a longer exhale
A few minutes of breathing with a long, gentle exhale signals safety to the body. It’s a reliable way to reset before a meeting or conversation.
2. Use your voice to calm your system
Humming, singing, or simply speaking at a slower pace engages the vagus nerve through the vocal cords. It’s subtle but surprisingly effective.
3. Add a short burst of cold
Cold water on the face or a brief cool rinse can interrupt stress and bring the body back to center.
4. Breathe from your diaphragm
Let your breath move into your belly instead of your chest. This stimulates the nerve where it passes near the diaphragm.
5. Connect with someone before the work begins
AÂ brief moment of genuine eye contact or a warm greeting triggers the body to enter social engagement mode. It sets a healthier tone for whatever follows.
What This Looks Like in Practice
Imagine walking into a meeting where the tension is already high. Instead of matching the intensity in the room, you take a slow breath, steady your posture, and speak from a grounded place. Conversations often come to a resolution when the leader does. People become more open. Problems become more workable.
Or picture a moment when you sense something is off. Instead of pushing ahead, you trust the internal signal, pause, and ask a different question. What was hidden becomes clear. That shift—choosing awareness over urgency—often comes from a regulated nervous system, not from a script. These aren’t personality traits. They’re states the body can learn.
The Bottom Line
Leadership presence is not just a communication skill—it’s a physiological capacity. Strengthening the vagus nerve helps you stay centered, thoughtful, and intentional when others are pressured or distracted. It allows your experience, intuition, and judgment to surface without being clouded by stress.
Leaders who learn to regulate their own systems give their teams a steadier foundation to work from. And that often changes the trajectory of conversations, decisions, and culture.