Posture First. Confidence and Success Will Follow.

What came first, the chicken or the egg?

You might think that confident people stand up tall… but what if I told you that, “people who stand up tall are more confident”? It’s true. In fact, posture can affect the way you feel and perform in several ways. I’m going to tell you why that’s true, and what you can do about it.

A 2009 article in Science Daily (1) cites several studies, concluding that posture gives people more confidence in their own thoughts. Other research (2) supports that Idea, by proving that cognitive performance is reduced when using bad posture. This might be because Oxygen delivery to your brain is compromised up to 30% by poor posture.

In terms of your physical body, you already know the consequences of poor posture: back pain, increased risk of injury, reduced efficiency/strength/endurance, chronic aches and pains, etc.

So, posture affects how you feel inside and out. It also affects how other people perceive you. Upright posture projects confidence and assertiveness. Rivals respect those with good posture more readily. Women are more attracted to men with strong posture (3).

So what should you do about it?

Posture is an outward manifestation of your internal beliefs and your daily actions. If you’re consistently taking action, you WILL stand up taller.

Prioritize training for posture and core strength FIRST in your workouts. Everything else will follow. Stretch what’s tight, strengthen what’s relatively weak, and aim for a structurally balanced body.

Strengthening the muscles that support upright posture, first, will cause standing/sitting up tall to be your default position. You’ll feel more confident, alert, and assertive. Other people will perceive you as more powerful. Your body will hurt less and be able to achieve higher performance in training over time.

Also try:

  1. Check your posture when you wash your face or brush your teeth. Stand up tall and look your reflection in the eyes, proudly.
  2. Try sitting tall for your whole car ride. Exaggerate it, and remind yourself by holding 10 and 2 on the steering wheel. Challenge yourself to hold posture for longer and longer drives.
  3. Try a standing desk, or sitting on an exercise ball at your work station. Don’t settle for slouching in crappy chairs, if you don.t have to.

Just stand up tall, FIRST.

  1. Ohio State University. “Body Posture Affects Confidence In Your Own Thoughts, Study Finds.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 5 October 2009. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/10/091005111627.htm.
  2. https://www.inc.com/minda-zetlin/good-posture-confidence-boost-slouching-brain-function.html
  3. Tom Jacobs. 2016. https://psmag.com/social-justice/posture-inspires-passion

Make More Money. Have More Time for Training.

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SupermanS

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How can I manage my time Better?

I’ve read tons of self improvement essays, self help books, and watched 100’s of YouTube videos on time management. Still, I tend to procrastinate or lose track of time. Here are some of the best tips that I’ve found for staying on track and on schedule.

The biggest battle for a lot of people is their phone. It’s scary how much time can be wasted staring at the screen of a smart phone. Most smart devices automatically track your usage, so you can easily see how much time you’ve lost to your technology. I was the worst, so I’ve been trying to limit my screen time in the following ways:

  • Uninstall social media apps. I’ve been trying to access social media for only a few minutes per day, and only on my laptop. By eliminating mindless minutes of scrolling through timelines, the screen timer on my phone started to drop immediately.
  • Keep your phone on Silent or Vibrate, and don’t keep it in your pocket. This made a huge difference for me. Rather than taking out my phone to check every notification, I started putting my phone in my bag. Since it’s always on vibrate, messages won’t easily disturb me when I’m focused on another task. I can check my phone at designated times, and I only turn the ringer on when I’m available to answer phone calls or reply to messages, immediately.
  • I don’t use the calendar in my phone. Your mileage may vary here, but this works for me. Instead of getting lost in my phone, answering old text messages, etc., I’ve switched back to a paper day-timer. I keep my schedule on a paper calendar, with a pencil.
  • Whenever possible, switch to hard copy books as well. Reading on your iPhone or Kindle can lead to other distractions; emails and text messages can extend your screen time, and sidetrack you from finishing your reading.

Aside from limiting your screen usage, another one of the most impactful ways to be more efficient with your time, is to wake up early and get stuff done! It’s easy to sleep in. Sometimes, if you’re not careful, it’s even easier to trick yourself into thinking that you got up early. I used to wake up at 6:00, but not really get much work done until about 9:00. If I had early training clients, I half-slept through their sessions. I experienced a huge boost in productivity when I started to use those extra 3 hours every morning. For me, that means about 5-10 minutes of deep breathing, meditation, or reading to get in a positive and productive mindset. Immediately after that, without hesitating, I jump into my tasks for the day. If you tackle the hard stuff first, you’ll be amazed how much you can accomplish before 9:00 AM.

It also helps to:

  • Keep daily and weekly to do lists.
  • Say “no” to unnecessary commitments, and leave room for what you need to do.
  • Face your problems, first. Putting things off often allows issues to snowball, and the resulting mess can cost you way more time, later.
  • Build in time for self care and personal development. You won’t be able to manage your time well, if you are burned out.
  • Try hiring a coach. You can get accountability and regular help with time management in my online coaching program: https://joetoproathlete.com/product/online-trainer

Just like with training, and every area where you seek to improve, tracking progress will help you be more successful. Take notes on what saves you time, and on what makes staying organized easier. Taking notes will also keep you more focused on your goal. It all comes down to how much you want to be successful here; as always.