Mood Follows Action
We cannot think our way out of old behaviors. We must behave ourselves toward new thoughts. We can use motivation to jumpstart and influence our daily routines, which with time become rituals, creating the conditions for lasting change.
Who the hell am I and how do I know? Well I’m sort of a failure expert in the area… I’ve been chasing my own tail attempting to think my way into and out of a plethora of behaviors for decades now. Maybe you can relate.
“Mood follows action” – Rich Roll
I’m actually pretty sure Rich wasn’t the first person to offer this pithy quote up, but it is from him that I first heard it. And man, it rang my bell. Felt like I’d just heard music for the first time, and it resonated through me like the first time I heard the opening riff to Black Sabbath – the slow boom of the eponymous song by the band and album of the same name.
If you’re not an Iommi fan (uh, srsly?), then we’ll just say it was a lightbulb moment in a dark place. A very bright and very difficult to look at light, but illuminating nonetheless.
We’ve got brain science that backs up this notion, too. Studies into neuroplasticity, your brain’s ability to reorganize and repair itself by forming new neural connections, show that this process happens based on experiences, not thoughts. Our brains (and hence our habits) adapt based on what we do, not what we think.
So if you’re trying to create changes to be more of the person you want to be, the type of person who does the sorts of things you want to see yourself doing in six months, a year, a decade and beyond, start practicing today. Start small but start with action.
And don’t expect to be perfect or even close right off the bat. In fact, expect the process to be utterly messy and show some love toward your inner Pig-Pen. Embrace messiness as part of the journey and practice patience with your beautifully messy, imperfect self. If you’ve been crawling this way and that, know that you didn’t learn to walk after having crawled for so long. And it took a while to do that well enough to walk around with the easy confidence you display in that skill today.
Until next time,
Chris