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SCOTT DOW -  

"Every emotion has a shelf life. After a while, emotions are designed to fizzle out, which allows you to set the emotion aside and think - think rationally about what's going on. But this emotional shelf life isn't as long as you might think. Now I'm going to tell you how long that shelf life is, but before I do, what do you think it is?

Think about it. How long do you tend to stay angry, sad or worried? Seconds? Minutes? Hours? Days? It probably depends on the emotion. And it's funny how negative emotions tend to stick with you longer than positive emotions, but they both have the same shelf life.

You actually feel emotions because they trigger chemical reactions that cause physiological changes in your body. That's why your face turns red, you break out in a cold sweat or feel a pit in the bottom of your stomach. But that chemical reaction is designed to fizzle out so you don't have to live with the red face, cold sweat, or pit in your stomach. So what is the shelf life? It's 90-seconds. That's it. And that's research out of Harvard done by a brain scientist by the name of Jill Taylor.

It takes about 90 seconds for the chemical reaction to run its course. Then it's out of your system. So why do we stay in a bad mood? Or why do negative emotions last longer than 90-seconds? It's because we keep playing the situation over-and-over in our minds. And every time we do, it triggers a new chemical reaction. And we can repeat this emotional loop until we're emotionally exhausted.

So here's what you've got to do...

When you get emotional, let the feeling come, but then let it go. Don't judge your emotions. Just accept them for what they are. Give it a minute or two, let it fizzle out, then move on. And you've got to hold yourself accountable. If you're staying in a funk, that's on you. You can't control those first 90-seconds, but you can control what happens after."

OUTRO 

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