Positive emotions include things like, interest, pride, serenity, joy, gratitude, hope, generosity, kindness, awe, admiration, amusement, love, cheerfulness, confidence, strength, enthusiasm, contentment and many more.
Positive emotions are also more than just you feeling good. They are powerful performance enhancers for your brain, proven to give you an advantage academically, personally, and professionally. Research proves it. One research study had preschoolers solve a puzzle. The children who were told to think of their happiest memory first, solved the puzzle 50 % faster. Even medical doctors asked to make a complicated diagnosis, were 20 % faster and more accurate when given a bag of candy first. They didn’ t even eat the candy. Just having the candy made them better at their job. Anyone else planning to bring a treat to your next doctor appointment?!
The truth is, the nurture we need is all around us. The sun shining down, the breeze on your face, your funny colleague, the people you love, the things you love to do. It is up to us to remember to be present and enjoy them. And, even when life gets crazy, we need to remember that we will do everything better when we are feeling good. Prioritize your happiness.
Here are two exercises that will help you on your way to a better balance for your scales.
We are going to do an exercise that will help you create some space for positive emotions inside of you. This exercise is called“ calm place”. What I’ m going to ask you to do is close your eyes and imagine a place where you can feel calm, safe and relaxed. It is better if the place isn’ t a real place where you have been, but it can be anywhere your imagination can create. Now, take a few minutes to just be quiet, with eyes closed and just be in your calm place. While you are there, think about what you see in this place, what you hear, smell and what you feel. What feelings do you have inside? Do you feel more calm and peaceful after this exercise? This is an example of using your imagination to choose positive feelings. Think of a name for your calm place. If you like you can write it on a piece paper and even a description or picture of it.
The second exercise is keeping a happiness list. Think of 5 activities that you have done in the past week that have created positive feelings. Little things and big things. You can hang this sheet up by your desk and take a few minutes each day to think of what made you happy or any of the emotions that are positive during that day. Write it down. When we are feeling down, overwhelmed or stressed-out, it can be difficult to think of things to make us happy. Having a list of options can help in those moments. Grow your list and turn to it for nurture in those moments when you need it most!
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