Let Positive TriggersT Turn on Your Best Self

One day last year I was sitting in my office, by myself, and I wasn't
feeling good. Yes, it's true. I research, write and speak about Positive
Psychology, but I admit it, I wasn't having a good day.

Here's my first question: Where do you look when you're feeling bad? Most
of us look down. And that's what I was doing in my office; I was looking
down at the floor. And then I started laughing! I realized that Ariela and
Eliana, my 2 and 3 year old little girls, had put stickers all over my
shoes. Somehow they slipped them on when I was kissing my wife Dawn
goodbye before I left the house that morning. Just thinking about my
little girls slipping stickers on my shoes without my knowing made me
laugh. But then I laughed even harder when I thought, "Where had I been
all morning with stickers stuck all over my shoes?!" It was at that moment
I got it.

The stickers my little girls had put on my shoes were a Positive TriggerT
for me. They instantly made me feel good. So here's my second question:
Where do you look when you're feeling good? You look up! And that's what I
did in my office; I looked up and my day was reset. I had a second chance
to make my day a good one. I was experiencing positive emotion.

Research studies from around the world have confirmed the power of
positive emotion. Positive psychology researcher Barbara Fredrickson at
the University of North Carolina, best known for her "Broaden and Build
Theory of Positive Emotion," found in her research that positive emotions
widen your attention, they increase your intuition, and they increase your
resilience to adversity.

Alice Isen, a psychology researcher at Cornell University, demonstrated
that when you experience positive emotion, you are more kind, generous,
and helpful. Isen also found that you're more creative and better able to
solve problems requiring "ingenuity and innovation."

Neuropsychology researcher at the University of Wisconsin, Richard
Davidson, discovered that positive emotions help boost your immune system.
And at least three studies have shown that there is a strong connection
between a longer life and experiencing frequent positive emotion.

Here's my takeaway. If you are being chased by a bear in the forest, you
should feel plenty of negative emotion! As my grandmother used to say,
"Run like the dickens!" Otherwise, positive emotions help you think better
and they help you build better relationships with others. People prefer to
be around curious and creative people, more than around people who always
seem to be running away from bears! And I'll bet, if you ask the people in
your life, they'll tell you that when you're experiencing positive
emotion, you do better work, you're a better leader, you're a better
spouse, and you're a better friend. I know that I'm a better dad to two
little girls when I'm experiencing positive emotion.

So, what are your positive triggers? What makes you smile? What makes you
laugh? What puts you in a creative mood? What triggers your passion,
excitement, and hope? For some of us it's looking at pictures of our loved
ones. Some of us listen to a favorite song. Others go for a quick walk, or
do a little dance. Some read a short, funny story. Others remind
themselves of their goals. Take a moment to think about the things that
trigger your positive emotions.

Think of it this way. When you enter a dark room, what do you do? You
reach for the light switch. Because you know when you flip it, just like
that, you'll have light. So what's your light switch? What turns on your
positive emotions? What positive triggers will help you look up when
you're feeling down?

Need some stickers?