5 Simple Things That Can Instantly Give Someone a Lift in Mood

Small psychological ways to make someone feel better…

The things you do or say can have an instrumental impact on someone’s life. It can change the way that person feels or thinks in a split second.

Even something as simple as leaving a comment on someone’s story. It tells you they spent their time reading your story and decided to spend even more time replying back to you and share their thoughts.

In a second that little action can make you feel amazing.

I know I can easily go from feeling like crap to feeling on top of the world even if someone does something small, like saying “thank you for listening.”

In my opinion, we should spend more time trying to help light up someone’s day, because it’s extremely powerful. Here are a few easy ways to instantly give someone a lift in their mood.

1. Remembering The Things Someone Told You

“I remember you said you were thinking of getting married, right? What’s the plan then!?”

Something my research supervisor said to me the other day.

My research supervisor is someone who has a billion things to do. He travels around the world giving talks/teachings on his area of expertise in clinical psychology. He supervises a load of other people. He runs the Doctorate course at Oxford and I’ve seen his outlook calendar — nobody wants a calendar like that, trust me.

The thing that amazed me was he remembered this small comment from a few months ago. We probably spent a minute talking about this initially, yet he remembered and brought it up.

Even remembering a very small thing someone told you has the power to give them an upturn in mood. It shows people you care about what they say.

It doesn’t matter who you are, how senior you are, refer back to the things they have told you.

2. Giving An Unanticipated Gift At A Random Time

I was scrolling through a comment on a story — it was truly inspiring and brilliant.

The person mentioned they would send an ‘I Love You’ note and flowers to their wife, in the middle of the month at their local school where they taught. They mentioned they did this because it was not expected by their wife. Other co-workers would see these flowers and would often wish their husbands would do the same.

Giving something to someone or showing gratitude towards them is more powerful when it occurs at a random time.

Just like in the story above, giving those flowers or notes on an anniversary or birthday is pretty much expected. It’s nice to receive them but getting them out of the blue can make someone feel fantastic.

That random, spontaneous thing shows you the other person deeply cares about you but was also thinking of you to give that gift.

Don’t shy away from making someone’s day by gifting or showing gratitude at random times.

3. Telling Someone You Thought of Them, Randomly

“I saw this psychology book and thought of you. Here you go, Saarim.”

That’s what my other half said to me a few weeks ago. I wasn’t feeling great. I had a lot going on with my psychology course, some family politics going on and I wasn't able to get to the gym or play football because I sprained my wrist.

Instead, that small, simple phrase my other half said to me was enough to change my mood.

Telling someone you thought about them at a random moment tells you, for whatever reason you popped into their mind.

And, to know they thought of you can be an indicator of how important or meaningful you are to them.

Let someone know if something reminds you of them. People deserve to know and it can result in a quick shift in mood.

4. Going Out of Your Way to Make Arrangements For Someone

It’s the end of Ramadan now but at the beginning, my other half’s mum did something really nice.

Her mum told my other half “Oh, tell Saarim to come over for his evening meal whenever. I’ve brought him fruit, Doritos so we can make nachos for him, minced meat so we can make burgers and a bunch of desserts.”

That was such a nice gesture because her mum doesn't fast and neither does her dad. She didn't have to get all that for me. But, her mum decided to go do a whole shop just for me so I’d come over for my evening meal.

When you do things for others that are inconvenient for you or might take some time out of your day, it’s honestly such a nice thing.

It’s another way of showing that person you care about them, you’re thinking about them and you want to spend time with them or make them feel good.

It’s easy to think “Ah, that’s long to do that for them.”

But, don’t think that, go and do it. You have the power to make someone feel great — don’t hesitate!

5. Using The Person’s Name

I just got to work and set my laptop up, getting ready to check my emails. I wasn’t feeling great that day.

A tall man in hospital scrubs walked in. Where I used to work, nobody wore hospital scrubs. So, naturally, he immediately caught my attention. He came over and asked how I was doing this morning.

He asked what I do in the team, and I told him I was an assistant psychologist. Immediately he gave me a curious look and said, “You don’t happen to be Saarim, by any chance?”

The first thought in my mind was “how the hell did you know that?” My name isn’t exactly the easiest to know, guess or remember.

He went on to tell me how his other half was my manager/supervisor and he remembered a few nice things she said about me. Within a split second of him saying my name, I smiled instantly.

Remembering someone’s name can make them think this person actually cared enough, listened and remembered who I was. That alone can instantly change someone’s day. It makes them feel important — and in truth, we all are.

So, do your best to remember someone’s name and start using it. I will caveat this with it’s not always easy to remember someone’s name and there are always circumstances where it’s tough. This could be a lecturer having hundreds of students or someone with attention difficulties.

However, if you are able to remember someone’s name, make sure to use it when you see them again.

Final Comments

We all have a massive amount of power to improve someone’s day and how they feel. We are social beings, and feeling connected with others is what can draw out these positive emotions.

So, keep these five simple things in mind, as they can go a long way in quickly giving people a lift in their mood:

• Remember the things they have said previously.
• Giving an unexpected gift, randomly.
• Telling someone you thought of them, randomly.
• Going out of your way to make arrangements for someone.
• Using their name.

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