For those who prefer to listen click below.
You need TONS of positive energy to reach your goals. No Joke.
Lots of people comment on my being a high-energy person or highly positive person. It was not always so. Here’s what I’ve learned.
1. DECIDE to live with more positive energy.
Positive energy means you bring optimism and that can-do attitude that allows you to eat your problems for breakfast. It’s a totally different feeling from entitlement or “why does this always happen to me?”
First realize that energy permeates everything and that you, yes YOU, impact the energy around you. (Heartmath Institute research on this.) You want to accept that choosing to experience more positive energy makes your life (and your community) better.
Please don’t be obnoxiously loud and enthusiastic all the time, constantly gushing. That might affect our energy here at the Mixonian. You can be quiet and positive. 🙂
2. ALWAYS interpret from a growth mindset.
A growth mindset means you know that you can learn anything you set your mind to. It also means your actual achievement potential is unknown, even unknowable.
That doesn’t mean that you have to deny all the annoying things that happen in a day, just don’t focus on the unfairness of it all. It’s a matter of acknowledging the pain, and choosing to smile and work through it. (=grit)
Look for the upside (at the very minimum there’s something to learn) and you will find it. Believe me, this takes a commitment.
If you’re facing something crummy (like unexpected car expense), share your Point of View with someone and ask them to point out the upside. That person will find so many advantages that you’ll be sorry you asked.
My favorite trick when it feels like I’ve been blindsided by crud, is to tell myself to go into neutral. I know part of my mind will get outraged if I try to be Miss Positive when stuff hits the fan. But once I go into neutral, then a more positive outlook is almost there.
3. NOURISH your mind and body.
You know about eating well…but be careful about what you feed your mind.
Be care about the news and media. Fear sells advertising! Outrage gets clicks.
Also make sure you are getting enough sleep. Being positive takes MORE energy (in the sense of cognitive load) than being negative. Click To Tweet
That’s why there are so many Eeyores out there. It takes work to be positive and high energy.
4. CONVERSE about the positive.
You KNEW I would bring communication to this. A friend of mine one shared this true nugget:
Don’t tell people your troubles. Half of them don’t care and the other half are glad you have them.
I don’t even think venting helps. Excuse yourself when others want to complain to you. Or ask them, “So what are you going to DO about it?”
It’s always good to converse about what IS going well, or what you’re excited about or what you’re obsessing over. (Like expresso chocolate brownies I have in the oven)
5. EXERCISE daily … even if it’s 10 minutes.
Movement helps process emotions in your body.
Strenuous exercise produces endorphins. (= HIGH energy)
I walk every morning and work out at Kick Fit and Zumba Strong together three or four times each week. I even schedule my work around exercise, not the other way around.
Getting exercise doesn’t mean going to the gym necessarily. It’s really a matter of moving your body.
Everyone seems to have a set energy level but you can CHOOSE to raise your energy on a consistent basis. This choice not only helps you be more successful in all your projects but also helps everyone around you.
D for determine to live at a higher energy level.
A for always interpret from Growth Mindset.
N for nourish your mind and body. (This includes sleep!)
C for converse about the good things.
E for exercise daily.