What if you had a time machine that transported you to a time when you were younger, healthier, and more vibrant? A Harvard psychology professor, Ellen Langer, wondered and created a study to find out.

She took a group of 75 year olds, and tested them for a bunch of typical signs of aging, like hearing, eyesight, flexibility, and so forth. Then she took them on a retreat where they were given one instruction: think and act like you did when you were 55 years old. The setting at the retreat helped create the right mood–the music, the magazines, and newspapers they saw and heard were all twenty years old.

Two weeks later, the participants were retested and their signs of aging had all improved, including a 10 per cent improvement in their eyesight! They looked younger, their joints were more flexible, and their posture straightened. Even their fingers, which typically shorten with age, actually lengthened.

Talk about creating your own reality! This story is so captivating, that it’s going to be made into a movie starring Jennifer Aniston.

How can you apply the lessons of this study to your life? What if you thought, acted, and felt like your life was full and rich, like your health was vibrant, and like your relationships were happy and loving? What would happen?

Try this exercise.  Think of an area of your life that you want to change. Climb into your personal time machine that transports you to a time, past or future, when you have or had what you want. Then think, act, and feel as though you have that improvement right now. Really feel it in your body. Use your imagination to visualize it. Journal about it. Touch it, smell it. Listen to the music that you would listen to if that life existed right now. Be grateful for having it. You’ll be amazed. Happy travels!