Better perform under intense feelings

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Prepare and build flexibility into your brain before intense moments, so that your brain automatically has options. Practice in the physical state you will be in during the intense moment to be able to perform effectively. Use feelings of awe to give your nervous system a brief break and diminish the impact of problems. Focus on getting better at performing while feeling intense sensations instead of trying to make the sensation go away.

Emotions are like opinions — everyone has them. Thanks to the pioneering research of today’s guest, we know that it’s possible to transform our feelings by changing how we think and talk about them. Lisa Feldman Barrett is a psychologist and neuroscientist at Northeastern University and Harvard Medical School. In this episode, Lisa and Adam bust myths about how emotions are constructed in the brain and experienced in the body. They discuss the surprising evidence that language doesn’t just describe emotions — it shapes them. And they examine how managing your emotions is easier than you may realize. Transcripts for ReThinking are available at go.ted.com/RWAGscripts