Take Control Of Your Emotions.

Emotions are a very powerful element of our psyche. They determine our reactions, shape our behaviors and can literally control our physical body. Anyone who has suffered from depression can vouch that the simplest of tasks seem immensely exhausting when your psyche is drowning in anhedonia. Patients of anxiety disorders will resonate with the fact that the body gets shockingly paralyzed when you face a trigger that induces fear in your mind. Even the healthy person can understand how neurotic emotions hinder the normal productivity of the body. If only we could control our emotions, we would be able to fully control our body.

What if I tell you that can be done? In fact, what if I told you its very easy to do? What if with the press of a button you could feel literally any emotion you want? Sounds absurd, right? Well, let me explain.

In this article, I will try to teach you a technique, which is backed by psychology and neurolinguistics programming, through which you can feel any emotion at any time you want. Today, I’ll try to teach you the Anchoring Technique.

Fundamentals of The Anchoring Technique

This technique is based on the psychological principle of classical conditioning. Classical conditioning is when you associate a stimulus with any natural response of the body. For example, if I repeatedly ring a bell every time I present you with food, there will come a time that you will feel hungry at the sound of the bell. I wouldn’t even have to present you with any food. What happens is that the mind associates the stimulus (sound of the bell) with the body’s natural response of feeling hungry.

Neurolinguistics programming (NLP) uses this principle to evoke emotions. In the Anchoring method, you condition your internal emotional state with any trigger/anchor/stimulus. Your brain forms an association between the stimulus and the emotional state. Have you ever had that rush of nostalgia when you pass near your old school? Ever had a rush of happiness when you listen to a song that you used to listen to with someone you loved? Ever felt that crippling sorrow on seeing the picture of someone you lost? That’s classical conditioning at play.

Yes, its that simple. Its that easy. Now let me tell you how to perform this technique and take control of your emotions.

Steps to perform The Anchoring Technique

1. Identify the internal state you are lacking.

To find any solution, you first need to identify what the problem is. In this scenario, you need to analyze what emotional state you are lacking.

For example, you lack confidence when you are interacting with the public. Or you lack a joyful internal state when you are with your friends and end up making everyone miserable. Or you lack calmness in stressful situations.

Analyzing these type of shortcomings will streamline your pursuit of diminishing them.

2. Identify the positive internal state you want to establish.

Now, once you have identified what you are lacking, you need to analyze what you want to achieve.

Think about how extraordinary it would be if you delivered a public speech that was so eloquent and captivating that it inspired your entire audience. Think about how happy you would be if you could be the source of fun and joy in your friends group, making everyone laugh and feel happy. Think about how exhilarating it would be if you remained stoic in the most stressful situations, radiating calmness and focus. Your contagious composure would lull the anxieties of everyone around you.

You need to feel these positive emotions. Believe you can embody them. And then, internalize those emotions. This will form the foundation of the entire technique.

3. Intensify the positive internal state.

Now you have the spark, you only need to turn it into a fire.

There are many things that induce a certain emotion in you. You may have realized that however sad you are, some songs just make you happy. Some speeches induce a fiery confidence inside you. Somethings just seem to magically calm your anxieties.

Expose yourself to such content repeatedly. Try to charge the positive internal state you are feeling to its maximum intensity.

4. Pick an anchor/trigger/stimulus.

This is the most important step of the technique. You need to select something to associate this intensified positive internal emotional state. The only requirement here is that the trigger/anchor must be UNIQUE.

It can be any song you like. It can be a particular fragrance. It can be any action that you wouldn’t normally do like pressing to fingers at the back of the neck, or joining your hands and pressing them, or pressing the back of your hand, or even pinching your palm. It can be anything, as long as you can use it whenever you want to induce the internal state of mind. This trigger will be the button that you press to feel that particular emotion.

I would suggest that you think of the anchor/trigger before starting the entire process so that you can immediately introduce it in that heightened emotional state.

5. Form the association between the anchor and the internal state.

Now keep exposing yourself to the anchor while in that intensified state of mind. Visualize an association beginning to form between the emotional state and the trigger. Only stop when you feel that a connection between the two has started to form. And then once it has, take the anchor away and bring yourself back to a normal emotional state.

You can check whether the technique worked or not by using the anchor when you are in a normal emotional state. You may not feel the emotion with the same intensity that you did during the procedure but you will certainly feel a significant shift in your emotions by merely exposing yourself to the anchor.

So, this was an NLP technique that many people use to take control of their emotions. I learned about it and practiced it myself. I had great results so I thought I should share. Hope it helps!