Michael Allison

Michael Allison is a performance and leadership coach, educator, and writer whose work explores the physiology beneath performance, pressure, achievement, and human connection. He is the author of The Performance Code: The New Science of Achieving Under Pressure (New Harbinger, 2027) and the creator of Autonomic AgilityŽ, developed in direct collaboration with Stephen W. Porges, PhD.

Michael is an educational partner with the Polyvagal Institute and a contributing writer to Psychology Today, where he writes The Pressure Paradox. He is co-author of Polyvagal Parenting and a contributing author to Somatic-Oriented Therapies, Polyvagal Perspectives, and Treatment Planning, Writing, and Documentation in Creative and Expressive Arts Therapies.

His work focuses on how physiological state influences what becomes accessible to us under pressure, including capacities for performance, communication, adaptation, connection, creativity, and recovery. Drawing from the science of physiological state, human behavior, performance, and his direct work with Porges, Michael has developed practical frameworks for understanding and working with the physiological shifts that occur within competitive, comparative, and evaluative environments.

He has trained and certified more than 1,000 professionals worldwide and works with professional athletes, coaches, sports psychologists, collegiate and professional sports teams, executives, leaders, and organizations. Michael has presented his work internationally, including at Oxford University and Harvard Business School, and through the Polyvagal Institute.

At the center of his work is a simple question: how can we develop a more attuned and agile relationship with our physiology so that more of who we are and what we are capable of remains accessible when it matters most?