The mind is far more powerful than most people realize.

To see this, look no further than the milkshake study.

Researchers gave participants what they believed were two very different milkshakes on two separate occasions. One was labeled as a sensible 140-calorie shake. The other was labeled as an indulgent 650-calorie shake.

Here’s the catch. They were the exact same milkshake. Yet the participants’ bodies responded differently.

Hormone levels changed not based on what they consumed, but on what they believed they consumed. The body reacted to the story the mind told it. This research, led by Alia Crum, proves a powerful truth. Your body responds to what your mind believes. Choose the story wisely.

When you expect bad things to happen as a way to brace for impact, you increase the likelihood that they will. When you project negative outcomes based on past experiences, you unintentionally invite a similar future.

Your mind looks for evidence to confirm what it already believes.

Dr. Crum offers a simple but powerful strategy to interrupt this pattern. When a negative thought appears, say this to yourself:

That short phrase creates distance between you and the thought. It reminds you that your mind can be retrained, just like any other system.

The work you are doing, reading or listening to Optimistic Outlook each day, is not abstract. It is life-changing.

Because if you can shift your mind, you can shift your life. And if you can shift your life, you open a more positive way of thinking for everyone who comes into contact with you.

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