When faced with challenging situations, sometimes we can do with a little confidence boost. I recently had a tooth extracted and used a tool called anchoring that allows you to access a desired state any time you want it.
The way anchoring works is that you remember a time when you felt a particular way (e.g. calm, confident, powerful). You immerse yourself in that past experience, feeling what you felt and seeing what you saw.
When you reach the point called ‘peak state’ when you feel the feeling most strongly, you anchor that state using a physical stimulus such as pressing your thumb and forefinger together.
When you need to recall that feeling you can do so by pressing your thumb and forefinger together again.
That’s exactly what I did when I went to the dentist. I used this technique to anchor the feeling of being calm and strong.
When I walked into the dentist’s waiting room I totally forgot about my anchor(!) I sat down and I will admit felt a little bit sick waiting to be called in.
Then when I sat down in the chair, I fired my anchor and, I kid you not, I felt calm and strong and stayed that way throughout the procedure.
As an aside, when I looked at my watch later that evening, I could see my heart rate was sky high when I was in the waiting room but returned to normal levels when I was sitting in the dentist’s chair.
The brilliant thing about anchoring is that you can use it to recall any emotion or state.
I frequently use it with clients to help them feel more confident. Perhaps you would like to try it for yourself?
It’s very straightforward:
- Remember a time when you felt exceptionally confident. See what you saw, hear what you heard, feel what you felt. Immerse yourself in all of the emotions and sensations related to that event.
- When you reach the point of ‘peak state’, that point where you felt exceptionally confident, press your thumb and forefinger together to anchor in that feeling.
- Test out your resource anchor, when you press your thumb and forefinger together can you recall that feeling of confidence? If not, recall a different event when you felt exceptionally confident and when you reach peak state press your thumb and forefinger together to anchor in the feeling. This will help you to ‘top up’ your anchor and build on that feeling of confidence.
- When you find yourself in a situation where you require a confidence boost, fire your anchor to help you recall that feeling of confidence.
Another tool that can be used for anchoring is to mentally draw out a circle on the ground.
Then remember a time when you felt exceptionally confident, direct all of the feelings and emotions attached to feeling confident and direct them at the circle on the floor.
When you reach the state of peak confidence, step into the circle. You can then fold up your imaginary circle to take with you. When you need it, you can unfold it, set it out on the ground and step into the feeling of confidence.
To find out how I can support you to become more confident at work, book a time to talk HERE.