Manage your “Internal Temperature”: 8 Steps to Help You Manage Your Thoughts, Emotions, and the Results You Get in Your Life

As the seasons are changing for many of us in the world, it got me to thinking about how so many of us pay attention to, and try to regulate our external temperature, while completely neglecting our "internal" temperature. Most of us like to keep our external temperature about the same all year long, give or take a few degrees. To do this, we turn our heat or air conditioning up or down to stay in our comfortable range, regardless of the season. But what about our internal temperature?             

You likely know what your external temperature comfort zone is, but do you know what your internal temperature comfort zone is? This is the place in your life where you are most comfortable. It is the place that is most familiar and where you are likely "reset" to if you start to move away from it. It consists of behaviors, thinking patterns, and habits and it is driven by both your conscious and unconscious thoughts about what you are capable of, what you believe about yourself, and where your tolerance for discomfort is.

Let me give you a couple of examples.

• Let’s consider someone who was doing really well at work, got a promotion, and was given more responsibility which they thought they wanted, however, once in their new role they are battling Imposter Syndrome and questioning if they belong there. They don't think they are qualified to be taking on their new responsibilities and/or don't believe that they will ever be financially free. Because they are starting to go outside of their internal temperature comfort zone and it is uncomfortable, they may start missing deadlines, coming in late, and eventually lose their new position. Their unconscious brain told them that they didn't belong in their new role and reset their temperature back down to where it thinks they belong.

• Another example is someone who says they want to be healthier. They start eating better food, exercising regularly, and start going to bed earlier instead of staying up late watching Netflix. After a period of time, they notice they are feeling better. They have more energy, they notice they look better, and others are taking notice as well. Even though they are doing the exact thing they said they want to do, unconsciously they may not believe that they are someone who is really healthy, who others look to for nutrition advice, or who gets compliments about how they look. They may also feel discomfort when they go out to dinner and everyone is ordering food they want to be eating, but which is not in alignment with their health goals. They may also experience discomfort with getting up earlier to work out when they would rather stay in bed. Over time, their brain will continue to try to pull them back into their comfort zone. It will want them to eat the foods that they were accustomed to eating for years, stay up watching television, and sleep instead of getting up to exercise. It will reset them back to their comfortable internal temperature even though this does not get them the results they say they want.

Not helpful, right??!! The good news is that now that you are aware of this, you can do something about it. Once you understand what your brain is trying to do, you can implement strategies that will help you stay on track with the things you want in your life, even when the process of getting there or staying there can feel uncomfortable. Below are 8 steps you can go through that will help you stay on track and reset your default internal temperature to where it needs to be to keep you on track with living the life you want to live.

Steps for resetting your internal temperature.

• Be very clear about what you want. Where do you want things to be, versus where they are now? Be as specific as possible and write it down so that you can go back and reference it often.

• Ask yourself WHY you want things to be different. Again, be very clear and very specific. Why is this something you are willing to work towards?

• Anticipate obstacles. You cannot predict everything it the future, but based on your experience, you can probably predict some obstacles you may encounter. Include discomfort as an obstacle. Write them down and come up with a plan for how you will try to manage them.

• Write down some strategies that you will use when you encounter obstacles and are feeling the discomfort associated with making a change. What things can you do to make it easier to stay on track with your goal?  Who can you enlist for support? What you come up with will be specific to you and to your goal, so identify as many things as possible and review them regularly.

• Address your thinking and your mindset. Remember, your brain will try to talk you out of things that are uncomfortable, so it is important to remind yourself of what you are working towards and why. Consider how your life will be different if you achieve what you want and maintain it. Remind yourself of what you want most, versus what you want now. Write this down and reference it often (ideally daily). 

• Uncover and challenge any thought distortions you may have. Thought distortions are patterns of thinking that cause you to inaccurately believe something to be true about yourself, others, or circumstances happening around you. To take a deeper dive into this, grab my free Guide to 5 Common Thought Distortions HERE.

• Change how you view discomfort. See discomfort as a sign that you are doing it right, instead of it meaning something is wrong. Instead of trying to avoid it, lean into it and appreciate it. It means change is happening which is a good thing.

• Visualize yourself changing your internal temperature. When you notice you want to revert to old behaviors, thought patterns, and habits, visualize yourself where you want to be and visualize yourself talking control of your internal thermometer. Visualize how you will show up for yourself each day. What will you be telling yourself about what is possible and why you deserve it? How will you feel? Your brain will help you get to wherever you want to go. If your thoughts focus on something being too challenging, you not being deserving of something, or you not being the kind of person who is /does / has _______, your brain will make sure you stay where you are. If, however, you visualize and focus on your ability to do challenging things, tell yourself that you are worthy of whatever you want and that you deserve things just as much as anyone else, your brain will take you to that place. 

When you understand what is happening with your thinking patterns, you can manage them. When you can manage your thinking patterns, you can manage how you feel, and the results you get in your life. You've got this! 

Live your best boss lady life!

~ Karen

Karen Vincent Solutions

If you are interested in some more information about ways of getting the results you want in your life faster, email me at [email protected].

If you want my free "5 Common Thought Distortions" guide. You can grab it HERE. In this guide I will help you understand what thought distortions are, how they negatively impact you, and teach you how to mange them, so that they don't manage you!

 Do you follow me on Instagram? If not, get daily tips and inspiration by following me HERE.