Are you one of those individuals who starts their day off at 5 a.m. with vigorous exercise before heading out to a busy day full of meetings, negotiations and interviews with talents who will make scaling your business possible?

If your answer was yes, you may soon discover the missing piece in your well-built puzzle the missing piece that could not only benefit you but your coworkers, business and family.

Through this article, I will manifest to you how you can use your brainpower to help prevent sickness and anxiety.

Before I begin, I'd like you to ask yourselves these next few questions and answer without giving it too much thought:

Do I have a healthy immune system?

Am I pursuing an active and healthy lifestyle?

How well do I feel about my commitment to my personal wellness?

Our mindset is essential to our health.

A study from Stanford University discovered that when people believe they are less healthy than others, they are more likely to die sooner, even if they are pursuing a more active and healthier lifestyle in comparison to others.

How can that be? If their way of life tends to be healthier than others, why are they dying sooner?

Our mindset is as vital for our health as our actions.

The perception of our health and how good we feel about our immune system can be more important than our actions when it comes to our well-being and longevity.

We all know the saying, "Our thoughts become our reality."

Scientists support this hypothesis by expanding on the impact of our mindset on our health and longevity. It has been proven that longevity is increased by positive self-perceptions of aging.

Today, we also know that chronic stress, negative thoughts and pessimism tend to shorten our lives. They damage our body, hasten our aging and wreck our immune system. Biologist and TED speakerElizabeth Blackburn claims that the scientific explanation lies in the "telomere effect." Telomeres are the chromosomes located inside the cell's nucleus, which contains our genes and genetic information. In her book on the subject, Blackburn claims that negativity, hostility, pessimism and a lack of presence were proven to shorten longevity and lead to accelerated aging.

Biologist Bruce Lipton claims in his book The Biology of Belief: Unleashing the Power of Consciousness, Matter, and Miracles that "our beliefs control our bodies, our minds, and thus our lives."

When my daughters were in kindergarten, they would come home with a new illness every other week. I was at a crucial point in the development of my career at the time I couldn't afford to get sick. So instead, I embraced a mindset that "moms don't catch sickness from their children," and indeed, this became my reality.

Several weeks ago, one of my three daughters, Kim, reminded me of this sentence and asked, "Mom, how come other mothers get sick from their kids when you never have?" All these years, Kim was led to believe that mothers have alleged innate protection against their children's sickness.

Is it a proven fact? Of course not. It's a belief I planted in her mind and mine throughout the years.

Our minds possess incredible power, and you can harness this power and use it to a much greater extent for the benefit of your business, your employees and, most importantly, yourself and your family.

But how does this relate to the recent coronavirus outbreak? Without undermining the importance of conventional medical treatments and tips for protection against sickness, it is crucial to understand that our mindset holds a significant influence, as well.

Choosing a healthy mindset is in our hands.

We can choose a healthy mindset that will positively affect our cells and bolster our immune system to its maximum capability. We can even embrace the mantra that "we have an optimal immune system." This mantra can instill a sense of reassurance and confidence. If necessary, we can follow up with actions that will help us believe it to be the truth (such as exercise, meditation or consuming vitamins). Embracing this mindset can support preventing sickness.

The fear of the coronavirus is yet another threat to consider.

Fear can create chronic stress and damage the functionof our immune systems. The release of stress hormones can shut down our immune system.

When we feel anxious and frightened, we weaken ourselves mentally and physically and become more vulnerable to that which we fear.

The human brain struggles to experience fear and pleasure at the same time.

In his book The Brain That Changes Itself, Norman Doidge explains the concept of "globalization," which happens when we are in love with life and enjoy everything around us. These moments when our pleasure centers are active hinder potential simultaneous pain center activity. The emotion of love not only brings us closer to happiness but also distances us from misery and suffering.

So how can we utilize this knowledge to break away from the cycle of fear?

Instead of tuning in to more frightening news and statistics, we can search for new opportunities for creating moments of joy, fun and happiness. Participating in meditation workshops, guided imagination journeys, physical activity, hiking or listening to music can assist us in disengaging the circle of suffering actively.

Happier people are healthier people.

Studies show that people who are happy are less likely to become ill when they are exposed to a cold virus.

When we actively shift our focus from a state of fear to a state of joy and happiness, we not only escape our anxiety but bolster our immune system.

Conclusion

As a leader, one of the most important things you can do in the following months is to aid your employees to embrace the right mindset in the context of their health and immune system. When you do that, you will help guarantee fewer sick-leave requests, lower anxiety levels, motivated employees, loyalty and commitment to the organization and its leader.

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How We Can Use The Power Of Our Brains To Help Us Stay Healthy - Forbes