Have you ever drooled when you saw a piece of chocolate cake or swooned when you heard a favorite song play on the radio? Perhaps every time you see an image of the American flag, you think of reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. In Neuro Linguistic Programming, we call those anchors.
Anchors are representations that we can choose to create for ourselves that can lead us into being and feeling a certain way. That’s right. You can choose how you want to feel. Anchors stir our brain to remember something. Unfortunately, advertisers use this all the time. That means that people can easily install anchors in you without you knowing it. Yet you can easily collapse them when you realize that for some reason you’re feeling bad and don’t know why.
Last week, I spoke with a client and later led her into a hypnosis session. Prior to beginning, I asked her what kinds of images or thoughts make her feel good and powerful. She told me that she loved birds, specifically, the type of lovely bird pictured here. It’s called a Prothonotary Warber. This little yellow bundle of love reminds my client that all is right with the world.
In her mind’s eye, she connects a vision of this beautiful creature with a memory that she has of a friend of hers who inspires her to be strong. When facing hard times, my client knows that she can easily conjure up an image of her little yellow friend and that memory will make her smile, soon turning her frown upside down.
The Law of Attraction states that whatever we radiate, we get back. Just like a radio signal, if you are broadcasting miserable messages to others, you can expect to get them back in return.
On the other hand, if you can make lemons out of your lemonade, and keep your spirits up with images and reminder feelings of being strong, loved and powerful, then you are on your way to grabbing the brass ring at the end of the rainbow! By maintaining control over your feelings instead of the other way around, you can manage your thoughts most effectively. It’s not possible to visualize and attract what you truly want, if you are down in the dumps. You’ll be getting much more than you bargained for and not in a good way!
So whenever you’re feeling blue and don’t know what to do, reach for the memory inside of you that can inspire you to think differently and gain an edge on whatever it is that’s bugging you!
As a NLPer, I’m going to push you to go the extra mile. I would recommend that you surround yourself daily with memories of things you love. Take pictures, listen to music, record a song or use a video camera or take a snapshot to capture some precious moment in your life. Don’t let it slip away!
Revel in the memory and thoroughly enjoy being around that presence of love and warm emotions. The ocean of abundance flows freely for all of us. You can choose to capture its glory in an eyedropper or you can fill your own swimming pool to overflowing. The choice is up to you!
What makes you instantly feel good? For me, it’s the image of seagulls. They remind me of my Nana, my grandmother. I loved her so much. Just thinking about seagulls or my Nana puts me in a great state. When I think about seagulls, I Instantly am transported back to the beach in Maine at sunrise, thinking about my dearly departed Nana.
I’m barefoot, wading in the cold, crisp October ocean, as the icy water laps gently at my thighs, I stare ahead to see the brilliant flash of a new day. I watch admiringly as a lone, graceful seagull flies by my head. I feel Nana’s presence. I send out a wish to the universe that the seagull would come back and bring some friends to surround me. I look up and notice a whole flock of lovely white seagulls surrounding, circling over my head for a few seconds. I feel blessed, warmed from within.
How about you? What do you love?