...One Giant IMPACT on Your Life.
Is there anything such as quick solutions to big problems? Surprisingly, creating small and effortless changes in our physiology and physical environment can often create long lasting positive changes we desire in our lives. Some of us are familiar with Einstein’s definition of Insanity. He said “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results”. Anthony Robbins, my favorite motivational speaker and coach simply said ‘You can’t get new results with old actions’. If we always overeat, we can’t expect to lose body weight; if we are always late to submit projects at work, we can’t expect a positive performance evaluation or a raise; if we always argue with our loved ones, we can’t reach our goal of happy coexistence with them. In order to change our results, it’s imperative to change our thoughts and behavior.
So how do you change your thoughts & behavior?
You have to change your emotional state.
TO BRING ABOUT A CHANGE IN OUR EMOTIONAL STATE, WE SIMPY NEED TO CHANGE OUR PHYSICAL STATE.
Many motivational coaches have taught us that our posture & physiology determines how we feel. Tony Robbins in his interview with Dr Oz in How to Break Your Negative Thinking clearly demonstrates this with a live audience. If you’re feeling low, fearful or depressed, how can you quickly change that? If the general physiology of a depressed person is to slouch, look downwards, stay in bed, etc. then by doing the exact opposite - which is standing up tall, looking up, and going out for a walk -can get us out of depressed feelings. Clinical psychologist Jordan Peterson, in his 12 Rules for Life, mentions a postural correction/adjustment as his first "rule" of life. It says, Stand up and roll your shoulders back. He clearly suggests that posture connects to status. Erect posture creates more serotonin and that in turns creates more confidence. We stand up straight when we are confident.
Here are some other ways in which you can create small changes in your physiology and physical environment to create a positive impact on your emotions. And when your emotions are positive, so will be your thoughts and behaviors.
Ready? Set ... Go!
i. Wake-up/Sleep schedule - Waking up half hour earlier and sleeping half hour earlier than your normal routine is a small change with big impact. Use a clock and a reminder method to prepare you mentally half an hour before your actual wake up time and actual sleep time for a “rise and shine” routine and a “winding down” routine you really look forward to. It must be a new ritual for morning and night time than what you’ve used before. So if you wake up to the smartphone or go to sleep immediately after using it, that’s a sign that you need to change it! Do this consistently for 21-28 days - no exceptions.
ii. Rise and Shine routine - How do you spend the first half to one hour in the morning after you awake? Put that cell phone where you can’t reach it for your first half hour after waking. Create a list of 3-5 important things you’d like to do that day (personal or professional). Have a healthy breakfast. Create a routine that is different from your previous one if the old way was not serving you well.
iii. Winding down routine - How do you spend the last half to one hour in the night before you sleep? Make sure to charge your phone in a different room at night. Take a mental account of how your day went and if you were able to achieve your daily goals. What brought you joy and satisfaction? What didn’t go so well? Don’t deliberate or analyze, just bring mindful awareness to yourself, relax and go to sleep. Create a new winding down routine if your old method was not serving you well.
iv. Change your landscape - If you spend too much time indoors, it’s probably time to change that creatively. How can you increase time outdoors for yourself/yourselves creatively and willingly? If you spend too much time traveling or at work, how can you spend more quality time indoors? Your landscape creates your mindscape.
v. Let there be light - Do you stay in a well-lit room (home or office) with clear view of the outside or you're inside a walled room (e.g. a cubicle)? Does the place you spend most time have dark drapes or glass panes? If your home office is dark, can you move to a well-lit place with natural light in your house?
vi. Change your outfit & instantly change your outlook - Do you tend to stay in your PJs or sweatpants at home? PJs are sleep attire and if you associate it with comfort, you’ll tend to be in night attire throughout the day, too. Change your outfit to something that’s not a PJ within half hour of waking up. Refresh your body and attire so you fully feel ready to face the daytime activities.
vii. Eliminate gloomy and negative areas in your house - Identify spaces in your house that make you feel (subconsciously) gloomy or negative - Is there a particular room in the house or a chair or a sofa that you usually find yourself sitting on where you feel more negative than usual? Identify that room or space right away.
Change that space by reorganizing the way the furniture is kept, throw out any item that affects you in a very negative way. Add elements that bring you joy … potted plants, a new year calendar, good books and revamp that space completely so you can’t recognize it anymore. Main idea is to physically and mentally dissociate yourself from negative spaces in your house. Create a meditation area with candles to invoke calmness or put an exercise mat to energize an area.
viii. Move or Rest? - If you tend to sit around a lot, stand up and take deep breaths for 5-10 minutes. Go for a walk or a jog. If your work involves you to be on your feet all day, sit down to relax and practice deep breathing for 5-10 minutes.
ix. You have a volume button, learn to change it as needed - If you’re usually a loud person, quiet yourself down for a period of time to look onwards into yourself e.g. meditation or deep relaxation. If you’re a very quiet person, find an outlet to make some noise. Sing karaoke, or laugh out loud to standup comedy, invite or call a friend or family member.
x. Do it today and do it now - Has there been one thing that you’ve been putting off for a long time and you know you will feel incredibly better if you just did it? An important doctor’s appointment you’ve been dreading - schedule it today. That relative you’ve been avoiding - make that phone call. That new hairstyle you’ve been meaning to get but weren’t sure how it will look? Do it anyway. That trek in the Himalayas you have avoided planning because your mind always comes up with thousand reasons why you can’t do it? Start planning today, book your tickets and mark the calendar. These are things that keep us ticking. These are things that tell us we are taking care of ourselves. So go and just get it done.
Old habits often force us to avoid dramatic changes. Sometimes, it is making small and painless adjustments that will reap huge rewards in one's overall wellness. The results are almost simultaneous. No pills necessary ever. So go ahead and create one small physiological change in yourself and record your new emotional state/feeling. What one small change would you be willing to make from today? How will that incrementally make today better than your yesterday? Become fully aware that you can consciously take a small step to bring about a big permanent impact that you desire. A personal coach can be a perfect guide, mentor and support for your journey when the goal is clear but the path is not.
Credits:
1. Anthony Robbins on How to Break Your Negative Thinking
2. Jordan B Peterson 12 Rules for Life
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