A mental trick to quickly turn a bad day around

Michelle Woo
Forge
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1 min readMay 22, 2021

🥧 Tip: Picture yourself as a pie and ask: “What piece is feeling down?

Having a frustrating day? On Happy Brain Club, Alexander M. Combstrong shares a mental trick to keep yourself from unraveling: Imagine you are a pie. Then ask, “What piece of me is feeling bad?” When you think about it objectively, you’ll likely discover that the answer is quite specific: Maybe you’re overwhelmed by your inbox, or you’re mad at yourself for snapping at your kids, or you’re embarrassed about something you said in that Zoom meeting.

Now picture that slice in the context of the whole pie. Think about the other parts of the pie, the parts that are golden. “This isn’t diminishing the pain or the struggle for the part of you that’s affected,” Combstrong explains. “It’s showing just how big you are, and it’s just a little part of you that’s not doing well.” The simple visualization can instantly change your perspective.

🤩 More from Forge on seeing things differently:

How to Visualize a Growth Mindset
Read more >>

A Question That Offers Instant Perspective: ‘What if It’s Easy?’
Read more >>

Put Your Worries in Perspective With ‘The Catastrophe Scale’
Read more >>

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Michelle Woo
Forge
Writer for

Author of Horizontal Parenting: How to Entertain Your Kid While Lying Down (Chronicle Books)