If You Posture, the Mood will Come
Studies have revealed that your brain doesn’t know the difference between real and make-believe. Therefore, one of the easiest, quickest and most effective ways to put yourself into a more positive mood is through your posture.
Let’s say you have low self-confidence. If you stand in a posture that is your idea of what self-confidence looks like, your brain will receive the message that you ARE self-confident and will deliver the appropriate feelings to back it up.
As you move through your week, pay attention to what cues your body is delivering to your brain.
When you sit at your desk, what message do you think the following postures deliver to your brain?
- Looking discouraged and sighing deeply
- Hunching over with shoulders tense
- Clenching your teeth
Obviously, any of the above postures will deliver the message that you are stressed and your brain will send stress chemicals to your body.
Contrast the postures above and their impact to the following:
- Looking excited and smiling
- Sitting up straight with shoulders back
- Keeping your jaw loose (by the way, there is NEVER any reason for your upper teeth to hit your lower teeth. Ever! Just loosening your jaw is a wonderful de-stressor.)
In some countries (India comes to mind), there are clubs whose people meet at sunrise each day and spend 10 minutes looking at each other and laughing. And then they go to work. Wouldn’t that be a great way to start your day? Talk about telling your brain how great life is and how happy you are!
It turns out that you can posture your way into being in a good mood!
So the question is, “Why do we refuse to do so?” As I travel the country, speaking to a variety of audiences, it’s fascinating to me to watch people who adamantly refuse to be coaxed into a better mood.
I will sometimes invite the entire audience to stand up and simply laugh (you can laugh on demand. It’s easy). As we laugh, I will look around the room and see people who just refuse to do it. They would rather cling to their misery than “look foolish.” It’s amazing how much we allow what others think of us to keep us stuck.
The way this works with Law of Attraction is rather interesting. As you deliberately put yourself into a better mood, you are completely focused on what you want! And you attract more of what you focus on!
Let’s get back to the example of self-confidence. As you strive to emulate a stance of self-confidence, you are completely focused on what self-confidence looks and feels like. As the Law of Attraction kicks in, you start attracting more self-confidence!
I love Ellen DeGeneres, who is, these days, a dancin’ fool! She is dancing a lot and everywhere. It is impossible to do as much dancing as she is doing and be in a bad mood at the same time. Not only that, but as we observe her dancing, it puts US in a good mood! What a gift!
The next time your energy is low, take a short, brisk walk. Walk with enthusiasm, as if you have energy. Your brain will think, “Gosh, I thought I was tired but I guess I wasn’t so tired, after all!” and send more energy chemicals into your body. It’s quicker and much more effective than coffee.
The next time you’re discouraged, think of what it feels like when you feel encouraged. Adopt that posture and your brain will follow suit.
This stuff works but, as my Grandmother used to say, “The proof is in the pudding.” Try it for yourself and watch what happens!
Reprinted from December 7, 2004
