Developing Confidence And Security
Attitude can sometimes be a fickle master, and unfortunately, the mind is often all too ready to be subdued by an unruly set of emotions.
Numerous studies have shown just how powerful an influence attitude and emotion can have on decision-making, character, metabolism, and other processes that affect individual performance and general health.
Most everything we do is regulated by complicated processes in the brain, and so there is a very deep and inherent connection between the body and the mind.
Consider a morning when you have not gotten enough sleep, and you drag through the day, surely you have noticed that not only are you limited physically as when you get a good night’s sleep, but your mind is also slow and your decision making skills are impaired.
A study published in the American Journal of Cardiology found that gratitude promotes and supports both the health of the immune and cardiovascular systems.
This research (Danner, et al) found a significant inverse relationship between the positive emotional content in autobiographies written by 180 Catholic nuns when they were in their twenties and their risks of mortality later in life, at ages 75 to 5.
These expressions of gratitude in their early lives were found to be related to their longevity as long as 60 years later.
Here a few of the most common effects our state of mind can have on us:
Confidence And Security
The opposite of insecurity due to psychological trauma is confidence, which is effectively a sense of hope, trust, or faith that things will work out for the better. When an individual feels a solid sense of confidence, whether in herself, a friend, a leader, an organization, or a higher power, the effects are quite astounding.
The individual will typically be happier, more optimistic, more willing to take risks, perform difficult tasks, learn new skills, and is even more outgoing and socially engaging.
Feeling loved and appreciated is an important aspect of confidence. People who feel loved tend to feel more secure, and thus accept criticism more readily, as their sense of self-worth is not necessarily tied to individual performance.
Love, admiration, and awe have a similar effect. People who feel a strong sense of affection, admiration, or respect for another individual or entity will be more likely to endure difficult circumstances and exert themselves for a specified goal. They also have a more positive outlook on life, and are thus more trusting.
Efficient marketers often utilize these principles to encourage consumers to purchase their products. There are many strategies and tactics that salesmen and advertisements use to help instill a sense of confidence, hope, affection, or admiration in their potential customers, as these feelings often lead to more risk-taking, and thus higher rates of purchase.
Mood
Mood is another powerful motivator when it comes to performance. People who categorize themselves as happy tend to work harder, and have more passion and drive for whatever activity they are engaged in completing.
On the opposite side of the spectrum is depression. People struggling with strong feelings of depression feel a sort of general pessimism.
This translates into less motivation as they lose hope that their efforts will yield the desired results, or even that the results themselves will fail to yield the desired emotional response, such as happiness as satisfaction.
Positive thinking can greatly elevate mood, as can a healthy diet. Positivity is a skill that can be learned with practice and by surrounding yourself with positive people. Some studies show that those who practice positivity are sick less often and live longer.
Mood is a complicated thing, but no one can argue that a positive mood enhances everything we do and feel throughout the day, which makes us better.
Mental Associations
An interesting twist to all of these effects is that different environments can elicit these feelings in people at different times. For example, a specific individual, building, logo, or activity might make a person feel affection and confidence, while another one might fill them with feelings of dread and anxiety.
These different responses to individual entities are known as associations, in which the mind connects an item with a specific mood. Typically, the individual had repeated experiences with that entity that all had the same emotional result, effectively training the mind to expect that same emotion each time it sees that entity.
Some good examples of this are youth who get giddy and excited every time they see a computer or video game system, even if they are not going to be using it.
Other people might be extremely confident and outgoing, but as soon as they are around a specific individual, they suddenly grow solemn and are incapable of speaking.
A more common example is that an individual might feel an increased sense of wakefulness and motivation to work hard while in a business or school setting, but as soon as they walk through the front door of their apartment all that vanishes and is replaced by a sense of exhaustion and depression.
This can sometimes be indicative of the association we feel with that particular place, or situation and can occur for many different reasons, such as knowing we have to clean the kitchen or do laundry when we get home and these are activities we may not enjoy.
Learned Helplessness
One of the most devastating effects that your state of mind can have on your day-to-day performance is a condition known as Learned Helplessness. People in this state feel powerless in their own lives, particularly in circumstances where other authority figures are involved. They feel the need to constantly ask permission to do anything outside the most basic tasks. They tend to suffer from a mild form of paranoia where they fear that they will do something to anger authority and suffer backlash.
As you might have guessed, this state of mind often arises out of situations where bosses, parents, or other authority figures have highly negative or explosive reactions to mistakes made by others. They learn quickly that it is better to not do anything daring or different without first asking permission.
However, this condition can escalate further when they fear to even ask permission. The result is that they don’t do anything unless they are expressly commanded to by someone in authority, because the alternative is to suffer the wrath of the boss.
It doesn’t take much imagination to see how this condition could affect performance, especially in the workplace. If a manager suddenly finds himself in the position of needing to micromanage every employee and tells them every little task they need to complete, that is a huge waste of time for the manager, and the employees only achieve a fraction of what they are capable.
Trauma and Insecurity
Learned helplessness is actually a mild form of a larger category of adverse mental situations known as psychological trauma. Trauma can be any negative mental adaptation or behavior that results from negative experiences in the past, typically involving a feeling of betrayal by a trusted person or organization.
People suffering from this kind of trauma typically have feelings of insecurity and confusion about how to expect people to act.
When in this state, individuals have a difficult time performing tasks that will be open to criticism, or tasks that will involve a situation similar to the one that initiated the trauma in the first place.
They also have a difficult time taking criticism as it increases their sense of insecurity.
The Effect Of The Mind On The Body
In addition to the effects that the mind can have on feelings of motivation and drive, there are many effects that different states of mind can have on physical health and performance. One of the most well-known examples is stress.
Stress Pitfalls
When your mind perceives a stressful situation it causes the body to release a hormone called cortisol. Cortisol has a few different effects on the body. In the short term, it causes the digestion of fat, protein, and bone tissue to increase the amount of energy available to the body. This also causes a slight increase in blood sugar levels, causing a heightened sense of energy and awareness.
This is highly beneficial whenever you have a strict deadline to meet, or when you are running towards the in-zone to make the game-winning touchdown. However, over time this process can lead to a depletion of bodily resources, causing a sense of exhaustion.
It can also be damaging to the health as the continual breakdown of bone and protein can cause weakened muscles and bones, leading to increased physical pain and risk of injury. Suddenly the increased performance and endurance an individual enjoyed previously now turns into chronic exhaustion and lack of motivation.
If the effect continues even longer, or if the perceived stress is too intense, it can even cause irregularity in the levels of other hormones. The change in hormone levels throws off other physical process and can cause people to suddenly gain weight and have difficulty sleeping.
It can also cause women to stop menstruating and become infertile. It also reduces the function of the immune system, leading to increased frequency and duration of common illnesses.
Typically, when stress has reached this kind of severity it becomes anxiety, and if left untreated, can turn into depression, which has even more adverse effects on the body.
The Bright Side Of The Mind-Body Dynamic
There is a bright side to this mind-body dynamic though. When an individual feels secure, loved, and passionate, the hormones released by the brain and body can have a healing effect on the body.
That effect is sometimes strong enough to help a person recover from injury and disease where previously they could not. Therefore, in a very literal way, laughter, love, and other forms of enjoyment can actually be a very potent form of medicine.
Other physical benefits of positive mental states include:
Increased energy (that lasts even longer than the effects of cortisol)
Better sleep
Better sexual performance
Better weight control
Reduced sensation of pain
Better focus and concentration
Better ability to cope with stress and how you perceive stress
Reducing risks for chronic disease and nervous system disorders
So overall, it definitely pays to do what is necessary to maintain your emotional and mental health in good working condition.
Healthy Habits For A Healthy State Of Mind
In order to keep your mind and body in elite performance condition, there are a few regular habits that can help.
It might not be worth it to work late for several weeks in a row if afterwards you are going to suffer from decreased productivity for an equal amount of time.
Pulling an all-nighter to study for a final exam might have the downside of being so mentally depleted afterwards that you can’t even remember what it was that you studied. Many students have studied for weeks on end, pushing themselves to the limits only to get to the test and pass out from exhaustion.
Taking some time to relax at the end of a stressful day can work wonders.
Watching an episode of television, playing with the kids, chatting with a spouse, getting some exercise, and playing a game are all good options. This will help terminate the stress cycle at the end of the day, preventing the effects of chronically high cortisol levels.
Make sure to take some time for vacation each year as well, and fill your weeks and months with periods of time to participate in your favorite hobbies.
Giving service to your community or to someone in need is a powerful way to eliminate the effects of negative emotions. Helping and serving others is a natural tonic that increases the amount of love, gratitude, and hope that we feel, and is well worth the investment of time it takes to do.
Working on confidence levels and being self-secure can have far-reaching implications in all facets of your life.
Become a positive person!
Promote positive emotions, and practice gratitude. Meditation can help with this, and to reach a calm state of mind no matter what the day brings.
Final Thoughts
It is important to remember that the mind and body are inseparably connected, and you cannot affect one without affecting the other.
So make sure to do what is necessary to maintain a positive attitude and good physical health. The time and effort you put into it will pay you back in spades.