How did you wake up this morning? In Miserable Cow mode, Super Woman mode or somewhere in between? And how much would you like to be able to quickly change your mood, if it’s not what you want it to be?
We all have those days when the alarm clock seems to ring louder than ever. As our feet swing around and hit the floor, we instantly realise our mood is not in a great place. This could happen easily – a bad night’s sleep, a sick child up all night, a worrying deadline looming or just not having the mental strength to get over something nasty someone said. It happens – a lot – but do you have the know-how to quickly change your mood?
Regardless of how crap you feel, you generally still need to face the day. You still need to get the kids to school and achieve what it is that you need to achieve. Rarely can we just lie down again, pull the covers over our head and hope our negative attitude will just disappear. You have to buck up and keep going and here are 3 easy steps to quickly change your mood from Miserable Cow to Super Woman!
3 Easy Steps to Quickly Change Your Mood
1. Raise Your Heart Rate!
Get off your butt quickly and raise your heart rate! Even if it is just a little bit. That doesn’t necessarily mean getting to the gym at 5am (though if you can do that, it would be awesome). Just do jumping jacks in your lounge room, run up and down the stairs until you’re panting or do a few laps of your backyard. This article tells us that just 10 minutes of exercise is enough to improve your mood by assisting with the release of endorphins. Isn’t 10 minutes worth of exercise worth ensuring that the other 1,430 minutes of your day are spent in ‘positive woman’ mode?
2. Blast the Stereo!
There is SO much evidence that music can instantly change your mood. I have spoken about it before in the article – 100+ Songs That Will Change Your Mood – and in my book, PUMPED. You can quickly change your mood if you choose to turn off the morning TV and radio shows, with their endless stream of overnight criminal activity and traffic chaos. Just blast some uplifting, funky tunes throughout the house instead. Then sit back and watch the results. My kids and I have our ‘Happy Playlist’ which works wonders.
3. Do Something for a Stranger - Today!
Look around you – there are plenty of things you can do to support a stranger if you just look up and become more aware. We can get so caught up in our own thoughts and bad mood that we don’t even see what is going on around us. Even if you are stuck at home all day with small children, you can find something wonderful to do for someone else if you set the intention to do so. Random Acts of Kindness make the world a better place and, have the added benefit of being able to quickly change your mood. It will make you feel good – I promise!
Here are some ideas:
- Hold the door open for someone.
- Send a paper ‘thank you’ note.
- Smile! It’s contagious! ????
- Help someone struggling to carry their shopping.
- Offer some help to someone looking lost in the street.
- Give a compliment – ‘You look great’, ‘I love your earrings’, ‘I think you’re a great mother/sister/friend’;
- Ask the person making your coffee how their day is going and really listen. Look them in the eye and really say thank you!
- Come to the rescue of someone in need.
- Give someone your seat.
- Let someone go ahead of you.
- Write a compliment letter to someone’s employer.
- Give the postman a bottle of water on a hot day.
AND – if none of that works and you’re still feeling like a cranky, miserable cow then take responsibility for your crappy, negative mood and stay out of everyone’s way.
I get it – it happens – but it’s up to you to accept ownership of your crappy mood and to stop those harmful vibes from spreading! Misery can also be contagious so remember to own it, put it to bed at night (if it lasts that long) and try waking up the next morning with a whole new attitude.
Good luck and remember…
BE YOU! We like her BEST!
