How will you make people feel today?
What we see, hear, smell or touch can make us feel something. At the moment, what we hear or read from leaders and colleagues carries more weight than we’ve probably ever felt in our lives.
Inspire people or anger them, bring sadness or joy to their lives, it’s under your control and always YOUR CHOICE.
Choose that motivation carefully, as the feelings you invoke in others will eventually rebound and be felt by you when you least expect or want them. Maybe not today, or even in a month or a year, but the rebound effect of our actions and behaviours are proven. History is littered with examples of virtuous or dishonourable actions being rewarded equally in return.
Some call this karma, but scientists call it Newton’s 3rd law. Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Whether that is in the physical world around us, relationships with others or even in our own minds; filling those environments with toxicity will eventually poison us too.
Especially during this time of fear and anxiety we currently live, your ability to increase or sap energy within those around you is amplified. It’s a superpower, for good or bad. Like never before, in most of our lifetimes, we’re going to need to pull together and support each other to get through the global challenge, alongside those challenges we have individually or as groups.
Thankfully there are more examples in our world of humanity pulling together to achieve success, rather than seeking to destroy. However, a phenomenon known as “negative bias” means our brains tend to overthink risks, problems, pain and a variety of unpleasant emotions and commentary. Of course, these aspects of our lives are important and can’t be overlooked, but at times like these we need to accentuate the positive, as the song lyric goes.
Heroes and villains will be born during this pandemic. Be on the right side of history and support the people in your teams and others around you that need your positivity, integrity and inspiration. You will be rewarded one day as a result — that’s just science!
