How to Intensify Emotional States

Have you ever had a good feeling that just faded away? Like you were feeling sort of happy but couldn't really get into it. Or perhaps you could sense a touch of gratitude but couldn't fully feel the emotion. Maybe you were trying to relax but didn't let go completely?

When we minimize the feeling of our positive emotions, we often miss out on the very vibrancy that makes life amazing.  We settle for glad instead of overjoyed; hopeful instead of unstoppable.

Fortunately there are many simple techniques you can use to get more juice out of your positive emotions.  Many of them come from the field of NLP (neurolinguistic programming). I will share with you a very quick and easy technique to amplify positive emotions.  With consistent practice for a couple of weeks, this technique can help you feel a lot of alive and vibrant.

The Process

This is a simple process invented by Richard Bandler that involves spinning your feelings.

1. Think a positive emotion you would live to have like confidence, love or gratitude. Use the principles of physiology and focus outlined in 3 Easy Ways to Change Your Emotional State Instantly to induce that feeling in your body.
2. Notice where in your body the feeling starts and where it moves. It may move clockwise, counter-clockwise, vertically, horizontally or in some combination. For me, I often find that feelings start in my stomach and tend to move upwards toward my head.
3. Now that you know how the feeling moves in your body, consciously spin the feeling in your body faster and faster. As you increase the speed, subjective intensity of the feeling will also increase. In the matter of a few seconds, you will be vibrating with positive emotion.

Use the above process any time you want to feel an emotion very intensely.  With consistent practice, the process will become second nature.

Bonus Process: Turn Negative Feelings into Positive Ones

This process builds upon the previous one. You can use it any time you have a negative feeling such as fear or anxiety and want to turn it into a positive emotion.

1. Notice where the negative feeling starts in your body and how it moves (similar to the previous process).
2. Imagine pulling the feeling out of your body. Give the feeling a color.
3. Reverse the direction of the spin - perhaps by turning it upside down. Change the color of the feeling to one you prefer - maybe your favorite color.
4. Pull the new feeling back into your body while it continues to spin in the opposite direction.
5. Spin the new feeling faster and faster and notice how the emotion has changed.

These exercises may be unusual at first since you may not be used to using your mind and body this way. Practice these processes for a couple of weeks and they will become second nature - you will be able to easily and effectively manage your emotional state.