Yesterday’s post featured five ways to raise your mood. Here are five more:
6. Think of something you’re grateful for.
It is surprisingly easy to think of something you’re grateful for. It only takes a few moments. And as soon as you think of something, you feel noticeably better. If the first thing you think of doesn’t raise your mood enough, ask yourself what else you’re grateful for. We naturally have our attention on our goals and what we’d like to attain in the future, and the mind naturally compares what we have with what we want to have. That’s motivating sometimes, but it can also make you feel demoralized or frustrated. It is equally legitimate — and ought to get equal billing — to think about what you have (compared to others or compared to your past), or what you have gained, or what you are just plain glad about. Try it the next time you feel discouraged or frustrated. Ask yourself, “What am I grateful for?”
7. Take some time and sit still quietly.
Simply sitting and thinking can raise your mood consistently. All you have to do is sit still without doing anything. How often do you do that? You always have lots to do, and if you’re not doing something, you’re watching a movie or listening to music. Your mind is almost continually engaged. When you sit still, after about fifteen minutes, your mind seems to go into a defrag mode. Unresolved issues bubble up and get resolved. Your mind seems to naturally sort itself out. It feels almost as if you had things you needed to think about that were pushed to the back of your mind, waiting for an opportunity. Sit still and let your mind think for a half-hour to an hour. I think you’ll be surprised at how clear-headed and peaceful you become.
8. Do some exercise.
Exercise beats depression, but even if you’re not depressed, a little exercise usually raises your mood. It’s an all-purpose mood-raiser that just about anyone can use. If you haven’t exercised in the last couple days and you’re not feeling as good as you would like, try doing some exercise today and see if that helps. It probably will.
9. Get a little done on a purpose you care about.
Think of one small goal you really want. And it’s really important you think of something you want. You could do things you should do all day long, completing task after task, but if there’s no juice in it, all that accomplishment won’t raise your mood. For real enjoyment, you need: 1) something you want to accomplish, that 2) you enjoy accomplishing. Do a little of your joyful purpose today, or if the day is almost done, then start tomorrow. Think of something you really want to do that you really like to do, and get a little of it done.
10. Reframe a circumstance that makes you feel bad
“Reframing” means interpreting the situation differently. When something happens, you interpret it a certain way, and your mind usually does it automatically. The situation just seems a certain way to you, and you have feelings appropriate to the way you look at it. When you reframe a circumstance that makes you feel bad, you won’t feel bad any more. Nothing has changed except how you’re looking at it, but that’s enough to change your feelings. To reframe something, all you have to do is 1) notice some circumstance is bringing you down, and 2) ask yourself if there is some other way to look at it than the way you automatically look at it.
There – you have it. Ten good ways to improve your mood. Keep this list around and when you want to feel better, try one.
Cheers!
Vidya
