Cooking at the right temperature is pretty critical, right?
I’m sure you've felt the frustration of putting a saucepan of soup on the hob to warm only to check it a few minutes later to find you forgot to turn the ring on.
Or, you preheat the frying pan a little too much and your sausages practically bounce back out of it in a cloud of spit and smoke…
(You can tell I speak from experience!)
It’s all down to delivering the right amount of energy to the food - too much or too little of the stuff can cause you problems.
The same goes for getting your energy right for the tasks you need to do every day.
I’m not talking about the obvious stuff like making sure you get a good night’s sleep and eating well - they’re important of course, but I’m talking about the finer detail - dialling your energy up or down depending on what you need to do.
For instance, if you’ve got a lot of paperwork to plough through, you don’t want to sit at your laptop whilst you feel as if you’re bouncing off the walls.
Similarly, you don’t want to deliver a presentation if you’re pooped out and yawning.
(You want to yawn, now don’t you? Go on - enjoy! I can wait..)
Managing your state is a skill like any other. It requires a mix of self awareness and action.
We can often be unconscious about our energy state and we forget we can do anything about it.
If you want to check yours at any time, it’s good to start by noticing what your body’s doing.
How fast or shallow is your breathing?
If you want to go in the opposite direction energywise, then start with your breath: if you want to slow things down, take slower, deeper breaths. If you want to energise yourself, then fill your lungs and push out breath with a little more force.
Then, check how you’re holding your shoulders. If you’re tense, then relax your shoulders. If you're tired you might need to push them back and hold your head up higher.
I also find music helps change my state - I put on the track that feels like I want to feel.
My own personal favourite state changer if I need a boost?
I find my dog, Eddie, and start looking excited in front of him - I’ll talk a complete load of sh*t in a very high voice and start dancing around and BINGO he’s up for a PARTAAAAAAAAY!
Dancing with dogs has to be the ultimate instant fix, because they're ninjas at being happy.
Ed can change his state in a flash from dozy dog to disco diva in an instant.
He does it wholeheartedly, and you can, too!
Why not give it a go today?