Thursday, May 29, 2008

In the Mood for Good Things

Conjure up the image of someone you know. Now, imagine that person is in a really bad humor, you can feel it from a mile away. What do you do? Do you rush up an ask what's wrong, run the risk of getting your head bit off, or do you stay in the background, until the vibes improve?

Most of the time we avoid people when they're in an obvious foul mood. And with excellent reason. We know these people are not at their best, they're not fun to be around, and a lot of times they're not willing to let go of that icky emotion right now.

So realize that if you're in a nasty mood, everyone is avoiding you as well. You don't have say anything, people can tell from your facial expression and body language - you send the message "approach at your own risk".

Time spent in a bad frame of mind is time lost. It's almost impossible for anything good to happen to you when you're like this, so you need to remember that you CAN turn this state of mind around.

Ways to get yourself back to feeling like yourself:

1. Avoid getting overtired, or low blood sugar. Exhaustion is sometimes unavoidable, but it is not a desireable state of being.

2. Set a time limit. "I will not speak to anyone for the next 45 minutes while I have this private anger party." Then let it go.

3. Remember the advice to look for the best interpretation of a message or event. It's possible that you're over-reacting and taking a message in the way it was not intended. Even if you think you KNOW you have the right to be offended, try to be mindful that there is a slight possibility that another interpretation is out there.

Feeling bad, meaning sad, depressed, angry, on edge, does not help you. The energy you spend justifying these feelings is also not helping you. There is a quote I've seen but I don't remember who said it, "Feeling resentment is like taking poison and expecting the other person to die." The same happens with all negative emotions, you hurt others, but mostly yourself. Turn it around, ASAP.