Heres how to manage your negative mood

Heres how to manage yur negative moodHeres how to manage your negative moodAre you currently in a good mood or a bad mood?Now, let me ask you another question How is your day? I bet that youre having a bad day if youre in a bad mood, and a good day if youre in a good mood.Thats obvious, right? But heres the thing since it has such a big impact on the quality of our lives, why arent we managing our mood better? Because lets face it, we shouldnt let a bad mood ruin our day.And yet, I never hear people about managing their mood. We all assume that our mood is influenced by outside factors. Things that we do not control.The Stoics often write about not letting other people get under our skin. They remind us that we cant control other peoples actions or outside events.But no matter how you live your life, at some point, you deal with annoying people or events that piss you off - things that ruin your mood.So how do you avoid staying in a bad mood, caused by external things? And how do yo u even generate a good mood? Lets discuss those two challenges.1. How to manage a negative moodHave you ever tried logging how often youre in a bad mood? I did. Ill tell you this. If youre anything like me, youre probably more often in a bad mood than you thinkHad a bad night of sleep?badeanstalt weather?Stuck in traffic?Dealing with an ahole at work?Disrespected by a clerk?Shit happens my friend. Things will never go your way all the time. Even the most wealthy, healthy, and happy people deal with the perils of humanity.Like almost every process thats focused on improving something bad, to manage a negative mood, we must become aware of our problem first.And no, its not a problem that bad things happen. Im not saying that we should avoid things that destroy our mood. Thats what weak people do.Its not the event thats harmful, its our negative reaction thats the problem.Remember that negative emotions can be very useful. We have them for a reason. However, we must recognize that stay ing in a negative state of mind is a problem.So for the next two weeks, just like keeping an activity log, record your mood. Try to find out exactly what triggers your negative mood.Thats all there is. Again, were not trying to avoid getting in a bad mood. Were trying to raise awareness. Thats the only way to snap out of it.2. How to generate a positive moodOnce you have better self-awareness and you know what triggers a negative emotional state, its time to focus on the next step.And that is Can I get a trommel roll, please???The next step is .Do nothing.Wow, dude. Thats a huge anticlimax.Do yourself a favor and dont follow your first instinct. Its almost always bad.Sometimes I get nasty emails, comments, or tweets from people who dont mean well.This morning, I received an email from someone who called me a liar because he couldnt download a free eBook from Amazon that I shared. Its not my fault that he doesnt know his way around Amazon. Calling me a liar because of that pisses me off.My first response was to shrug it off. But then, I told him to fuck off (and if people write me back to judge my writing style, I tell them the same).I admit its not a perfect response. But if I dont respond, I get in a bad mood because I feel like I didnt stand up for myself. I take my values seriously and protect them at all costs.You see, our first reaction is always an emotional one. In this case, my first response was to ignore it.However, Im also not saying you should react to everything. All we need to do is take a few seconds and look at the stakes. Is your integrity or relationship at stake? Then, action is necessary.Lets say you start getting annoyed by your girlfriend or boyfriend. You can thinkSo if I get angry, shell get disappointed. Then, I will get even angrier since she cant talk to me when Im angry. So its best if I dont allow my emotions to escalate.If you value your relationship, its better to not lash out- even if that makes you feel better at the moment.Ma naging our mood is hard. And we dont get this right on the first try. But if you give it time and keep practicing, youll be much more in control of what influences your mood.But lets say something happens that triggers a bad mood. What now?Do this Visualize good things.Get the serotonin flowing. See the bigger picture. Set a goal for yourself to never be stuck in a bad mood for more than 10 minutes.Soak in your own sorrow. Respond. Feel bad for yourself.Then, move onLook, I cant sit here and tell you I never get in a bad mood. Lifes unpredictable, and circumstances often spiral us in a negative mindset.But what separates the positive people from the negative people is that positive folks never STAY in a bad mood. Sometimes Im in a bad mood for a whole day. But I will never accept that.Life is too short to drown in your own misery. Get over yourself and enjoy this one life you have. And while youre at it, try to be in a good mood as much as you can.Do you want to get tips to improve your mood? ? Listen to my podcast geschehen about it.This article first appeared on Darius Foroux.