Daily Inspiration 5-31-16

"I merely took the energy 

it takes to pout 

and wrote some blues." 

-- Duke Ellington 

One of the things that most of us don't think about and don't realize is that we can't be standing with our arms up in the air and be depressed. It just doesn't work.

I've learned so much from Anthony Robbins, or I think he goes by Tony Robbins now. The most important thing to me that I learned from him, I've shared several times and it has to do with the choices we make in vocabulary. When someone asks, "how are you?" It is oh so common to say something lame like, "fine. Thanks. How about you? But, it is a whole other adventure to say, "I'm off the chart today!" Or, "I'm supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!" Or, "What's rockin' your world today?" These are all far better choices and instantly wakes people out of their boredom and sleeping while standing on the job.

The second most important thing I learned relates to the subject today. It is that mood or emotion creates our state, or helps create it. We all know that. That's easy to figure out. But, what is so cool about what I learned is that state can create emotion! I used to teach this in some of my training classes.

Just as a different choice of words makes all the difference in an interaction with another human being, a change in state does it too.

Quite often, when I've been asked to speak somewhere when it's my turn, I ask everyone to stand and stretch. It changes their state. Part of it is getting the blood flowing better, moving some muscles, but most of it is because that little act prepares the brain to receive better.

So let's look at this a bit. In order to be depressed, downtrodden, bummed out, feel powerless, feel grief and despair, you need to be in a certain state physically. It's typical for the head to hang low, the shoulders to be inward, more often sitting, and so on. Feeling sorry for ourselves requires the participation of our body. Then we can really get into those low feelings.

But, if you were feeling any of those kinds of emotions, it is much harder to try to convince you to let go of those thoughts. You might even take exception to my brashness and uncaring attempts. However, if I can get you to stand and lift your arms and look to the sky and go up and down on your toes, your thinking is instantly changed. Why? Because our state creates a feeling, and our feeling creates a state. In other words, they are co-creators.

So, all Duke Ellington needed was to find the energy in pouting, which he probably has had experience with just like all of us, and there in that state, a different flow comes in his thinking. More feelings like that are attracted. Often creative people do this. I've done it and so I think I understand it pretty well. Of course the same is true for the positive emotions, and that they are co-creators with energetic physical positions and movement. This is one reason why exercise is so beneficial to us, including Yoga and Pilates, etc.

Next time you're feeling down about something, whatever it may be, try changing your physical state and watch what happens to your feeling.


You Could Call It The State Of The Union. 

Spread Some Joy Today--by expressing your joy physically as well as mentally. Can't help but do it, right?