Smooth Your Moods
Have you noticed that when you're in a low mood your energy seems to disappear? Our energy level is directly related to how we manage our moods.
Low moods sap our energy; high moods maximize it.
Every day we have a fixed amount of energy; this is our life force.
Where we choose to put our thoughts and attention is where we spend our life's energy.
When we spend it in a low mood-just spinning-it takes that life force, that energy that we have to live a good day, and it's like misspending.
We're putting our energy into a place where we aren't going to get any return on it.
Our energy is not going where we want our lives to go.
We're taking ourselves where we don't want to go.
That's why a lot of people just don't get very far: They're misspending their daily energy quotas.
They feel exhausted because they're trying to do their lifework at the same time their low moods are draining their energy and also creating messy situations that require even more energy to clean up.
We only get so much energy each day.
That is a major responsibility, but it's also a gift to spend our energy accomplishing our life's work and dreams.
Knowing that low moods bleed our energy gives us even more incentive to learn how to stay out of them as much as possible.
Because, wow, when we're in a good mood and having a great day, don't we just feel like we have tons of energy? A great example of misspending one's energy comes from a friend of ours who is a public speaker.
She had a speaking engagement coming up and needed to confirm arrangements with the group but had only succeeded in playing phone tag.
With each day that passed, her thinking slipped.
She started saying to herself, Oh man, I'm such a slacker.
I can't speak! I don't have anything to say that's of value.
She went further down that path, thinking, These people must be crazy to want me to speak, to spend all this money to bring me to this event.
Then she admitted she knew she'd been in a low mood lately; at the same time she had an inner sense that everything was going to turn out OK.
She told us that she had tortured herself unnecessarily with her low-mood thinking: By the time she finally connected with the event sponsors, a new plan had emerged to make the experience much richer and more valuable for everyone concerned.
Had our friend recognized her low-mood thinking earlier, she could have maximized her energy and avoided a lot of stress.
Years ago when we were learning how to be graceful in our low moods, we were at a retreat, talking about the mood-levels principle.
One of the women in our group told us about her system for making the most of her moods.
She used the idea of a thermometer, with freezing at the bottom and the highest temperatures at the top.
She had marked off the thermometer from 1 to 10, with 10 representing a really high mood and zero standing for "in the pits.
" When her mood dropped below 5, she would stop making decisions because she knew she would only be making them out of low-mood thinking.
If her mood got down close to zero, she would stay at home, sleep, watch movies, and avoid being around other people altogether.
But when her mood started going above 5, she would make decisions, knowing they would be positive and healthy for her.
When her mood was close to 10, she would write notes to herself to read when she was in a low mood.
Here are other key strategies for preventing or lifting low moods: When you're in a low mood, shift your thinking to something else; this will allow your mood to rise more quickly.
When you're facing a situation that could lead you into a low mood, repeat favorite positive phrases, such as All is well.
Let go and let God.
This is an illusion; just let it be.
You also can shift your attention to a favorite funny story; laughter is guaranteed to kill a low mood.
A sense of urgency in any mood may indicate that it's time to slow down and check your thinking.
Most anything can wait 24 hours.
Practicing patience gives us the best chance at good decision making.
Getting still and being quiet lets inspiration surface.
Remember, do not personalize the comments made by others when they are in low moods; their low mood is talking, not their true feelings.
We don't have to join them.
We can "get out of Dodge.
" We live in a world that is full of low moods.
We have all experienced the discomfort of being around someone who is speaking from a low mood; either their words are hurtful to us or we just don't know how to respond to their rant about an issue.
A wise man suggested that, in either case, we simply find compassion for those who are being mean or difficult.
We only have to be around these people or situations for a few minutes or hours; they have to live with their minds all the time.
The bigger question may be: How do we remain positive and uplifted in a world that seems to be negative and filled with conflict and hatred? When we are able to access our brilliance, we create a different world, one that comes from our highest thinking and feelings.
From this place we see the best in those around us and, eventually, in the entire world.
Once we understand how mood levels work, we don't have to repeat the mistakes of the past.
We can begin to create more extraordinary relationships.
We learn not to make big things out of nothing, not to buy into low moods, and to recognize when it's time to take a break and do something to give ourselves a boost.
Taking a deep breath can be all we need to shift back into our brilliance.
If you are really active or athletic, you might do something physical, such as going for a walk, riding a bike, or playing a round of golf.
Once we've removed ourselves from a situation we thought was serious, we sometimes can look back and see the humor in it.
The real challenge is when we see the humor in a situation someone else is going through but they can't see it that way yet.
We've learned the hard way when not to laugh.
Remember to be gentle with yourself.
These situations will tend to disappear by themselves if we do not give them too much attention.
We do have the power to shift our moods.
With practice we can choose to live from our brilliance, which always brings forth our highest moods.
Excerpt from ACTIVATE YOUR BRILLIANCE, Back to Brilliance ©2007
Low moods sap our energy; high moods maximize it.
Every day we have a fixed amount of energy; this is our life force.
Where we choose to put our thoughts and attention is where we spend our life's energy.
When we spend it in a low mood-just spinning-it takes that life force, that energy that we have to live a good day, and it's like misspending.
We're putting our energy into a place where we aren't going to get any return on it.
Our energy is not going where we want our lives to go.
We're taking ourselves where we don't want to go.
That's why a lot of people just don't get very far: They're misspending their daily energy quotas.
They feel exhausted because they're trying to do their lifework at the same time their low moods are draining their energy and also creating messy situations that require even more energy to clean up.
We only get so much energy each day.
That is a major responsibility, but it's also a gift to spend our energy accomplishing our life's work and dreams.
Knowing that low moods bleed our energy gives us even more incentive to learn how to stay out of them as much as possible.
Because, wow, when we're in a good mood and having a great day, don't we just feel like we have tons of energy? A great example of misspending one's energy comes from a friend of ours who is a public speaker.
She had a speaking engagement coming up and needed to confirm arrangements with the group but had only succeeded in playing phone tag.
With each day that passed, her thinking slipped.
She started saying to herself, Oh man, I'm such a slacker.
I can't speak! I don't have anything to say that's of value.
She went further down that path, thinking, These people must be crazy to want me to speak, to spend all this money to bring me to this event.
Then she admitted she knew she'd been in a low mood lately; at the same time she had an inner sense that everything was going to turn out OK.
She told us that she had tortured herself unnecessarily with her low-mood thinking: By the time she finally connected with the event sponsors, a new plan had emerged to make the experience much richer and more valuable for everyone concerned.
Had our friend recognized her low-mood thinking earlier, she could have maximized her energy and avoided a lot of stress.
Years ago when we were learning how to be graceful in our low moods, we were at a retreat, talking about the mood-levels principle.
One of the women in our group told us about her system for making the most of her moods.
She used the idea of a thermometer, with freezing at the bottom and the highest temperatures at the top.
She had marked off the thermometer from 1 to 10, with 10 representing a really high mood and zero standing for "in the pits.
" When her mood dropped below 5, she would stop making decisions because she knew she would only be making them out of low-mood thinking.
If her mood got down close to zero, she would stay at home, sleep, watch movies, and avoid being around other people altogether.
But when her mood started going above 5, she would make decisions, knowing they would be positive and healthy for her.
When her mood was close to 10, she would write notes to herself to read when she was in a low mood.
Here are other key strategies for preventing or lifting low moods: When you're in a low mood, shift your thinking to something else; this will allow your mood to rise more quickly.
When you're facing a situation that could lead you into a low mood, repeat favorite positive phrases, such as All is well.
Let go and let God.
This is an illusion; just let it be.
You also can shift your attention to a favorite funny story; laughter is guaranteed to kill a low mood.
A sense of urgency in any mood may indicate that it's time to slow down and check your thinking.
Most anything can wait 24 hours.
Practicing patience gives us the best chance at good decision making.
Getting still and being quiet lets inspiration surface.
Remember, do not personalize the comments made by others when they are in low moods; their low mood is talking, not their true feelings.
We don't have to join them.
We can "get out of Dodge.
" We live in a world that is full of low moods.
We have all experienced the discomfort of being around someone who is speaking from a low mood; either their words are hurtful to us or we just don't know how to respond to their rant about an issue.
A wise man suggested that, in either case, we simply find compassion for those who are being mean or difficult.
We only have to be around these people or situations for a few minutes or hours; they have to live with their minds all the time.
The bigger question may be: How do we remain positive and uplifted in a world that seems to be negative and filled with conflict and hatred? When we are able to access our brilliance, we create a different world, one that comes from our highest thinking and feelings.
From this place we see the best in those around us and, eventually, in the entire world.
Once we understand how mood levels work, we don't have to repeat the mistakes of the past.
We can begin to create more extraordinary relationships.
We learn not to make big things out of nothing, not to buy into low moods, and to recognize when it's time to take a break and do something to give ourselves a boost.
Taking a deep breath can be all we need to shift back into our brilliance.
If you are really active or athletic, you might do something physical, such as going for a walk, riding a bike, or playing a round of golf.
Once we've removed ourselves from a situation we thought was serious, we sometimes can look back and see the humor in it.
The real challenge is when we see the humor in a situation someone else is going through but they can't see it that way yet.
We've learned the hard way when not to laugh.
Remember to be gentle with yourself.
These situations will tend to disappear by themselves if we do not give them too much attention.
We do have the power to shift our moods.
With practice we can choose to live from our brilliance, which always brings forth our highest moods.
Excerpt from ACTIVATE YOUR BRILLIANCE, Back to Brilliance ©2007