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Good things about to happen. That’s ‘anticipation’ in a nutshell. It’s excitement. It’s a feeling of wanting to speed up the future. And interestingly, while you’re experiencing this sense of anticipation, you’re generating positive energy. We anticipate because we have faith – faith that some future event is going to happen. And this very faith and positive energy that it generates helps ensure that the anticipated outcome will actually occur. A sort of a virtuous cycle and self-fulfilling progression.
I wonder if you can identify with these following experiences. You know that feeling when you’ve got an exciting trip coming up that you’ve been planning for weeks, maybe even months? Or perhaps it's not a trip, but after a long week of work, looking forward to spending time with friends or family. Whatever it may be, we all know that magical feeling we get when we’re looking forward to something. Having anticipation for things has an incredibly powerful impact on everything from our decision making, to our physical and mental health. What we choose to be excited about, or worry about, greatly influences how we navigate the uncertainties of life and can be a decisive factor in our own long-term happiness and well-being.
You might be asking, well, how does looking forward to something that hasn’t happened yet, and that I haven’t even experienced yet, positively impact my mood, stress levels, my health? When we have things to look forward to, we’re subconsciously expressing gratitude for what we have. We’re telling ourselves that we’re on the right path, increasing our motivation to complete a task, look at the future more optimistically, maybe both. This too can make us more patient and less irritable in moments when the alternative would be the easier choice.
When we visualize what we have ahead of us with positive outcomes, even in negative situations, generally that’s what we’ll end up receiving as a result. When we anticipate something with anxiety or stress, and with negative outcomes, the same too can be said. The wild thing is that there are now whole bodies of research that have looked into the psychology of human anticipation. As one study reported, when we’re able to positively anticipate what’s ahead of us, and not just when we’re going on a long-needed vacation for example, but even in high stress situations, it helps us envision positive outcomes, which in turn guides our decision making in that direction. It also helps us improve our coping mechanisms in the event something doesn’t go our way. As we’ve discussed in previous editions of the Sunshine Report, challenges or obstacles can also be leveraged as opportunities to learn, grow, and overcome.
What’s important to remember here though is that the choice is, once again, ours and no one else's. We can choose to guide our behavior in a direction where each and every day, we can anticipate something with a sense of excitement. And it doesn’t have to be some big event, it can be even the smallest of joys. As one researcher put it, “Anticipating a smattering of small, delightful experiences can be as enjoyable as looking forward to one big event.” It could be something as simple as anticipating your first cup of coffee of the day after a warm shower or going to see a movie you’ve been looking forward to. When we start anticipating and enjoying the small things, we develop the underlying habits that guide us toward a succession of positive outcomes. In a real sense, it is anticipation – that magical phenomenon - that leads us to a life of success and ultimate fulfillment. So, what is it that you are gleefully anticipating as you think about later today, next week, next month, next year and beyond?
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