What are “Anchors”?

The majority of us have a repertoire of instantaneous reactions to certain environmental inputs in our lives, inputs which, once noticed by our brain, can make certain emotions (or “states”) swell up in a second – thus affecting our physiology, mental focus and resourcefulness at that moment.

For example: What happens when you see flashing lights from a cop car in the rear-view? How do you instantly feel even though you may not have done anything. Or, how does a certain smell bring you back to a certain childhood moment again simply by getting a whiff of it.

The answer is anchors.

Anchors are simply “cheat notes” for your brain in order to ensure your survival (in the modern sense of the word), so that it knows without searching all of its files that when a certain “this” happens – I should “feel” or “react” like “this”. And we all have anchors: they can be sights, sounds, something we tasted, smelled, touched, a certain colour, a certain combination of movements, etc.

Anchors occur when a certain unique input is noticed by our brain when we are in a peak emotional state or  simply when we have attached a distinct meaning (consciously or subconsciously) to a certain event, sight, sound, etc.

The problem is that most of us have, for the most part, generally disempowering anchors. We are puppet dolls which are constantly wondering why we feel a certain way without understanding our own (unnoticed or hidden) rituals and anchors which affect us daily, contorting our minds, bodies and focus in all these different and conflicting directions without our conscious consent.

The worst injustice is that we never realized that we can condition & install new anchors into our brains allowing us to feel ANY way we want INSTANTLY .

We can feel ANY way we want. Instantly.

The following are six of my own personal anchors which I’d like to share with you in order to give you an example of how you can install these anchors and make them work for you.

These are my  six “Finger” anchors. I use these on a daily basis to ensure maximum resourcefulness in my life.

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Number 1:Right Hand Index Anchor: Peak Performance/State

Whenever I rub my thumb against my right index finger I instantly go into a peak state. In order to better understand what it is I mean by “peak state”, think of that feeling you have when you just finished working out, scoring the game winning goal, having sex or getting a raise, for example. It’s that feeling of uber-confidence, where you stand up tall or sit up straight, your mind focused like a laser and you feel like you could beat up god if he challenged you.

On a daily basis, this is the anchor which I use the most frequently it’s what allows me to wake up early and go to bed late, meaning it allows me to directly feel the “juice” of life at any moment – better enabling me to be clear on what it is that I want, and giving myself the physical and mental energy and resourcefulness to accomplish my dreams.

I call up this when I don’t “feel” like finishing the last 10 minutes of a workout in order to get a  ”second wind” to keep moving. I use it to silence that little voice in my head saying “you can’t do that”, whenever it pops up. I use this anchor right when I get out of bed to overcome that groggy feeling and get excited about my day. I use this anchor to generally feel great at all times. I use this anchor when I’m pissed, bored, annoyed, etc., in order to change my state instantly thus making me 100% resourceful.

Note – as soon as I touch it, I feel that way INSTANTLY. It automatically calls ups those emotions in my brain. It is similar to the Staples “Easy Button” for peak emotion.

How I installed the anchor:

Repetition. Everytime that I was in a peak state of happiness, confidence or feeling of accomplishment. For example, everytime I finish a tough workout and I feel like a million bucks, I rub my index and thumb. Whenever I get a compliment on my cooking, whenever I run an extra mile, whenever I make love, whenever I give an excellent presentation, whenever…

Whenever I am in a peak emotional state of confidence, power, etc., I will rub my fingers together. It doesn’t happen overnight, but after a few days you’ll start to notice it work a bit, then after a few weeks and months, it’s the best thing you’ve ever taught yourself. Conditioning through repetition will make it stick, just make sure you anchor it when you’re in a PEAK emotional state, not in a “well, I feel pretty good” type of state.

I’ve almost installed this anchor so well now that my index and thumb don’t even need to always rub against each other, even when I simply have them touching something simultaneously (like a coffee cup for example) my brain will put me in this state.

ps: This anchor is what made me quit smoking cold turkey after an 12 year pack a day habit.

Number II:

Right Hand Middle Finger Anchor: Mindfulness/Breathing DEEPLY.

Someone once told me that the act of breathing is something that we all do and something that we think we all do the same way. We are very, very wrong.

Most of us are half-ass breathers: we take shallow breaths, or breath too quickly, etc., without even noticing that we are even breathing, we do not breath with mindfulness. Even now, are you noticing how you are breathing? You could probably improve it.

Now I won’t get into all the advantages of mindfulness (in the buddhist sense of the word/activity) and deep breathing on a regular/daily basis (But I would HIGHLY encourage you to study them- start with google) but I want to simply explain that I have discovered both of these to be extremely important aspects of my success, of my mood, of my resourcefulness that I decided I should anchor it in as well.

This anchor is installed more so through repetition, I do not have to be in a peak emotional state to anchor it. I just simply rub them when I realize that I am in fact breathing deeply and repeat this about 10-25 times per day – calling upon this anchor to ensure that I am breathing properly and being mindfull of the present moment in my focus. A great anchor.

Number III:

Right Hand Ring Finger – Creativity

Again, this is an anchor mostly conditioned through simple repetition, however I do also use it when in a peak creative state in order to reinforce it even more.

This anchor is one I call upon in my personal life more than anything, when I’m writing, drawing, painting, making music, etc.

I do, however, also use it in business as well in order to focus my brain on thinking outside the box, dissolving any linear thought processes and get truly creative in seeking solutions.

Number IV:

Right Hand Pinky Finger – Calm/Rest

This is the anchor I use mostly before bed or, when possible, before a quick nap. This one is a little trickier to condition yourself for since when you begin installing it you have to remember to rub your fingers together when you are already resting/calm/sleepy – which can be a difficult time to remember to anchor yourself. But nonetheless, I decided to anchor this one in so that I can instantly put my body in a state of calm and rest, whereas my physiology quickly follows my mind.

The opposite of the index/peak state anchor.

Left Hand – Question Anchors:

Number I:

Left Hand Index Finger – What’s My Outcome Here?

I am a firm believer in the idea that focus is power, that wherever you focus your mind you will find the answers which you seek (whether they be positive or negative) and I also firmly believe that one should first always know the “why” behind their goals before the “how am I going to accomplish this?”

I use this anchor when I’m preparing my goals for the week (Why do I want to accomplish these things? What are the ends here?) ; I use it when I visit friends (Is my outcome to just spend time with them or to make them really feel good and appreciated as a person?);  I use this usually before I take on anything and everything.

This is an excellent anchor I use in conjunction with my peak state anchor we talked about earlier: First I use this to get clear on what it is I want and why I want it, then I’ll evoke my peak state anchor to get me in the right “mood” to accomplish anything, then I’ll make a list of “how” to reach my desired outcome.

Another anchor which must be conditioned simply through mindful repetition.

Number II:

Left Hand Middle Finger- I want/get/choose to do this

This is basically my, pardon my language, Fuck-Off-Procrastinating-Cooper anchor. I am lucky enough to have been taught that “our lives are a direct representation of the questions that we ask ourselves on a consistent basis. If you want a better quality of life ask better questions” – that is how I utilize this anchor.

One tactic (of many) when it comes to questions is the simple reversal of the common procrastination questions which we ask ourselves:

Instead of saying to ourselves: “Ugh, why do I HAVE to do this; I hate this; etc.” – instead use your own power and redirect your mind saying: “I GET to do this or I CHOOSE to do this or I WANT to do this”

This little change in the wording of your internal statements and conversations will ultimately change how you feel about any (supposedly “dreadful”) task at hand that you “have” to do. It’s the power of semantics.

For example: I use to detest washing dishes. I found myself always saying: “Shit, I HAVE to do those dishes…” – Until I decided to begin saying: “I WANT to do these dishes NOW, so that way I have more time to ….”

Simply by changing my focus towards a positive and empowering reason”why” I want the dishes done, I was able to put a positive angle on the action at hand. My mood followed my focus and the dishes are done happily each day. I will use this anchor in unison with my peak performance anchor in order to feel good while doing whatever it is I must accomplish and also in addition with my aforementioned “what’s my outcome” anchor.

Number IV & V: Left-Hand Ring & Pinky Anchors:

These two are still open. I’ve had plenty of thoughts on possible anchors for these two fingers but so far I have decided to keep them open for the future.

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Conclusion:

In conclusion we must learn to anchor ourselves for success. The six anchors which I have shared above are ones that I honestly use on a daily basis in order to ensure that my mind and body are always in a state of maximum resourcefulness.

One thing I must also note is that you can successfully combine these anchors for more powerful results. I will usually combine my peak state anchor with my creative anchor or my “what’s my outcome” anchor, which ends up actually reinforcing all of the anchors exponentially.

Lastly, you may be doubtful (so was I at first) but these do work – and they can absolutely change your life. Also, it doesn’t have to be finger anchors either: it could be a certain sound you make out loud or in your head, it could be slapping your hands together, etc. And remember that you can anchor ANY emotion or short thought, as long as you condition yourself in either a highly emotional state and/or with conditioned, persistent and consistent repetition.

[Please note: I, personally, did not create this system. The preceding was heavily influenced by some strategies taught by peak performance coach Anthony Robbins.]

Thank you for connecting,