Directors, actors, creatives — we plan. We rehearse. We control.
Every frame, every beat, every move mapped.
And yet, the moments that make art alive, unforgettable, surprising — rarely come from control alone.
They appear where planning meets presence, rehearsal meets surrender, and letting go meets daring to allow what wants to happen.
For decades, I’ve moved — yoga, Taichi, walking, swimming.
Not to figure myself out. Not to perform.
I moved to step aside long enough for life, art, and presence to start directing.
That’s when unexpected roles appear. Improv moments shine. Songs I never imagined writing emerge.
2006 — an award for walking and coaching
2010 — my first film role – without casting
2019 — first book published in the US – out of the blue
2023 — first song released – learning to sing by doing
None of it came from doing more.
It came from noticing what wanted to emerge.
Letting habitual thinking, feeling, and acting go.
80:20. Not perfect, but real. Almost trance-like — letting thought get out of the way
The irony of control: the tighter we hold, the less we steer.
Step out of autopilot — and clarity returns.
Insight returns. Presence returns.
Acting from the soul, not thinking your way through the scene.
Being instead of performing.
Dedication meets magic — the same magic I sing about in Blow That
Life hasn’t spared me. Loss. Grief. Moments that shake the core.
They came — and taught me to face and fully feel it all.
Ironically, that’s when songs began to emerge — like this one for my stepson.
Sung at his funeral. No music. No mask.
Just truth, courage, and love.
I couldn’t hold them back, despite the fear.
Not to perform. Not to entertain.
But to let the emotional energy move, create — and maybe invite others to dare to feel it all, too.
And still, movement and presence — yoga, walking, Taichi, swimming — keep me grounded, keep me creating, keep me human.
In that moment when thought quiets and body, heart, and mind move together, clarity, insight, and unexpected possibilities appear.
Science calls it flow and coherence.
I call it stepping into the magic.
Discomfort isn’t the enemy.
It’s the doorway to insight, intuition, and possibility.
Science quietly nods:
Stepping out of habitual thought reduces activity in the brain’s default mode network — the one linked to rumination.
Mindful movement lowers cortisol, relaxes the nervous system, and opens space for new neural connections and creative insight.
But this only happens when you actually pause autopilot — and notice what’s alive in the moment.
I’ve witnessed it with executives, directors, and creatives.
Breakthrough moments. Answers appearing out of nowhere. Sparks flying. Doors opening.
All during early-morning walking and coaching — live or over the phone.
Not teaching. Not pushing. Just accompanying.
Habit softens. Curiosity, clarity, presence emerge.
The invisible creative force — God, the field of possibility, the magic behind all existence — is already at work.
Walking Out of Your Old Self — Into Everything You Never Imagined
The door is unmarked.
You can’t plan what will appear.
You can’t control it.
Just lean in.
Pause autopilot.
Notice.
What emerges will be bigger than anything you imagined — inspired choices, creative breakthroughs, moments alive in ways you may not even have dared to dream.
Are you daring enough to see what happens when you finally step aside?
Manuela Stoerzer 