Your Body Language: Sending signals to others and to your Brain

Bring Your Best
All day today, stand up tall with your shoulders back, sit up tall, smile, take a few extra minutes to pull yourself together and give the world your best you.

In my freshman Psych 101 class in college, my professor instructed us that our first exam was to be a semi-formal.   Boys should wear jackets and ties and girls should wear a dress/or the like.   We all laughed as he went on to explain that studies have proven that people perform better at their task when they feel good about how they look.  By taking the care to put your best you forward, your mind and body receive messages that in turn send signals to help you operate in a higher gear.  All of our exams in his class were semi-formal, and we loved it!  I went on to become a Psychology major.  

I reflect on and share this incredible lesson all the time.  I believe that if you feel good, stand tall, and present your best self it makes a huge difference.   There are days that you will catch me dropping off my kids, in my pjs, teeth un-brushed, and make-up that I should have washed off the night before making the circles under my eyes look bigger.    BUT- on the days I am lucky enough to spend a few extra moments to pull myself together, I feel better, do better, and am happier!   Don’t you?

Tomorrow, take a little extra time to be your best you.  Be psyched you ran into your old neighbor you haven’t seen in three years and feel great smiling and listening to what is happening in their life.   

Follow this link or copy and paste it into your browser to view Ann Cuddy's Ted Talk in which she explains the research that has proven that your body language not only sends a message to others, but also to yourself.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ks-_Mh1QhMc