Unity of Santa Barbara is hosting international speakers and authors Michael Russer and Jacqueline Lopez for a two-hour workshop on the transformative power of living and working in a state of presence, 2-4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 16, at Unity of Santa Barbara.

The speakers define presence as a deep state of awareness without judgement, expectations or distractions.

“Mindfulness addresses the symptoms of emotional and psychological anxiety, fear and distress,” Russer said. “Presence addresses their root causes. This empowers individuals incorporating a simple presence practice to significantly reduce the impact of old emotional wounding.”

The foundation for the speakers’ presence work is the result of helping cancer survivors and their partners around the country deal with the significant impact that cancer and its treatment can have on their relationship.

Russer is an ongoing survivor of two cancers and Lopez is his life partner. By teaching them presence (which they say can be achieved in 60 seconds or less once learned), they can see a profound positive shift within their relationship and significantly reduce existential anxiety as well.

Russer and Lopez also teach mindfulnes,s but have found its limits in terms of achieving and sustaining deeply connecting relationships.

“Presence is the helicopter that can take you to the top of the relationship mountain very quickly, while mindfulness is the winding trail often requiring thousands of hours of practice to see the same results,” Lopez said.

Presence impacts all relationships, whether intimate, familial, work-related or someone you meet at the checkout line.

“Thanks to presence, I am seeing a profound shift in my relationships — personal and professional,” said Boysen Hodgson, a recent presence graduate, and national communications director for ManKind Project USA. “It is helping me stay more focused and less reactive, and my productivity is beyond what I get with meditation alone.”

Seats for this workshop can be reserved at PresenceTalk.com.

— Jacqueline Lopez for Unity of Santa Barbara.