In my video “How to Choose Your Emotional State Every Morning” I invite you to start each day with intention and purpose. I'm Clyde Lee Dennis of 7 Good Minutes, and today I want to show you a clear, hopeful path toward self-mastery by teaching you a morning practice that helps you choose your emotional state before the world claims it. If you want to move from reactive living to conscious creation, this simple question and the routine that follows will become one of your most powerful tools on the journey to self-mastery.
Attention: Why the Question Matters for Your Day and for Self-Mastery
There is one short question that can change everything about your day: “What do I want to feel today?” This question is the doorway to self-mastery because it invites you to take responsibility for the starting point of your inner life. Your emotional state shapes your thoughts, your decisions, your interactions, and your energy. When you intentionally choose how you want to feel, you are no longer a passenger in your own experience—you become the driver.
The quality of your day is determined not by what happens to you but by the emotional lens you choose to see it through.
Notice how that shifts your power. Instead of being buffeted by the first notification, the leftover stress from yesterday, or the momentum of habit, you get to decide where you anchor. That decision is the essence of self-mastery: the repeated practice of directing your inner state so it supports the life you want to create.
Interest: What Choosing Your Emotional State Looks Like
Choosing an emotional state is not wishful thinking or ignoring reality. It's setting a compass. You are not pretending problems won't arise. You are choosing a home base to return to when storms come. Imagine waking up and asking the question before your phone, before your list, before the world starts demanding. Pause. Breathe. Ask: “What do I want to feel today?”
When you do this, several things happen immediately:
- You create intentionality. An intention anchors attention.
- You program your mind to notice opportunities to feel the emotion you chose.
- You build resilience. A chosen state gives you a reference point when you stumble.
If you choose gratitude, you will begin to notice small blessings you otherwise miss. If you choose curiosity, challenges become puzzles to solve instead of threats. If you choose calm, you are more likely to respond thoughtfully instead of reacting impulsively. Each chosen state is a lever toward greater self-mastery.
Desire: The Practical Morning Practice to Choose Your Emotional State
Here is a simple, repeatable ritual you can use every morning to choose your emotional state and practice self-mastery. It takes less than two minutes, and with consistency, it reshapes your entire day.
- Before you reach for your phone or step into autopilot, stop for a moment.
- Take three deep, slow breaths. Let your lungs fill and empty. Feel your body settle.
- Ask out loud or silently: “What do I want to feel today?”
- Listen with your heart, not your head. Trust the first honest answer that comes.
- Hold that feeling lightly—like a warm light you can carry with you.
- Visualize moving through your day from that emotional place. See how you respond to common situations from this state.
This routine is powerful because it combines breath, intention, and visualization—three modalities that work together to alter your nervous system and shift expectation. That shift is the foundation of self-mastery: using simple, repeatable techniques to set internal conditions that influence external outcomes.
Sample Morning Scripts You Can Use
Use these quick scripts as templates until you find your own voice. The words matter less than the feeling behind them.
- “Today I will feel calm. I give myself permission to move slowly and breathe when things feel urgent.”
- “Today I choose curiosity. I will see challenges as chances to learn and grow.”
- “Today I will carry gratitude. I will notice the small gifts in my day.”
- “Today I choose strength. I will face what I can control with clarity and take one courage-filled step.”
Each script is an act of self-mastery: a promise you make to yourself that shapes your behavior and your interpretation of events.
Interest: How This Practice Creates a Buffer Against Life’s Ups and Downs
Life is unpredictable. The point of choosing how you want to feel isn't to avoid negative emotions—it’s to create a secure base. When you start from a chosen emotional foundation, you are less likely to be knocked off balance by external circumstances. You develop an anchor, a home base to return to. That's a hallmark of self-mastery: the ability to regulate your inner life so it supports your outer life.
When sadness, frustration, or worry appear, you can acknowledge them without allowing them to define your whole day. You can say, “I see you, anxiety, but I'm choosing to feel grounded today.” This is not suppression. It's compassionate leadership of your own mind and heart. You allow feelings to be present while maintaining a chosen orientation. That is emotional maturity and self-mastery in action.
Desire: The Benefits You’ll Start to See
When you practice this morning ritual regularly, you will notice measurable improvements in:
- Clarity of thought: Your mind becomes less scattered because your intention narrows what you attend to.
- Emotional resilience: Small setbacks stop dictating the tone of your entire day.
- Productivity: With the right energy, you work more effectively and with less friction.
- Relationships: You bring more presence, patience, and compassion to your interactions.
- Sense of purpose: Choosing how you want to feel connects you to values and long-term goals—key pillars of self-mastery.
These benefits compound over time. The morning choice is a habit that supports a life shaped by intention rather than by accident. That compounding is the essence of practicing self-mastery one day at a time.
Action: A 30-Day Challenge to Build Habit and Deepen Self-Mastery
If you want to move from curiosity to commitment, try a 30-day challenge. Commit to asking the question each morning and tracking your experience. Use a simple notebook or your phone to record:
- The emotion you chose that morning.
- One moment during the day when you noticed that emotion showing up.
- A moment when you strayed from the intention and how you brought yourself back.
At the end of 30 days, review your notes. You’ll begin to see patterns—kinds of days that undermine your intention, times when you’re most likely to default to old habits, and the small wins that indicate growth. That deliberate reflection is a practice of self-mastery because it turns attention inward with curiosity and purpose. You measure, learn, adjust, and repeat.
Daily Prompts for the Challenge
Use these prompts if you want structure:
- Day 1–7: Practice choosing one simple emotion—calm, curious, grateful.
- Day 8–14: Add a two-minute visualization of moving through a typical morning from that state.
- Day 15–21: Notice how your chosen emotion affects at least one interaction.
- Day 22–30: Add a short evening reflection on how your morning choice shaped the day.
These incremental steps help you move toward sustainable self-mastery because you are building a layered practice—intention, visualization, application, and reflection.
Interest: Specific Strategies When the Chosen Feeling Fades
You won't feel your chosen emotion every minute of every day, and that’s okay. Here are simple strategies to return to your anchor when you drift:
- Pause and breathe. Three slow breaths resets attention and physiology.
- Name the feeling out loud. Naming reduces its power and helps you respond.
- Use a physical anchor. A small object, a bracelet, or a note in your pocket can serve as a reminder of your chosen feeling.
- Re-scan your day. Ask, “What action can I take right now that would align with the feeling I chose?”
Each practice supports the development of inner discipline and builds neural pathways that make self-mastery easier over time.
Desire: Examples of Emotions You Can Choose and Why They Matter
Here are several emotions to consider and how choosing them can shape your day. As you read, notice which ones attract you. That attraction is your inner wisdom nudging you toward what you need.
- Calm — Lowers reactivity, helps you see options, and conserves energy for what matters.
- Gratitude — Opens perception to abundance, improves relationships, and increases resilience.
- Curiosity — Turns obstacles into learning opportunities and reduces the need for validation.
- Energy — Fuels productivity, helps you take decisive action, and combats procrastination.
- Compassion — Strengthens bonds, reduces conflict, and softens self-criticism.
- Strength — Helps you meet challenges with courage and steady resolve.
- Contentment — Encourages appreciation for what you have and reduces constant striving.
Each choice aligns with different goals and moments. Choosing an emotion becomes a way to orchestrate your day, and that orchestration is a practical exercise in self-mastery.
Interest: The Long-Term Impact on Your Identity
As you practice choosing your emotional state, something remarkable happens: the gap between who you are and who you want to be begins to close. You begin living from your preferred identity—someone who responds with calm, curiosity, or compassion—rather than acting out of habit. Identity change is central to self-mastery. Small consistent actions lead to a new story about who you are, and that new story changes your choices, which then reinforce the story.
When you repeatedly choose how to feel, you strengthen a feedback loop: intention → action → reinforcement. Over time, the chosen emotions become more automatic. You start to encounter stressors and default to your chosen orientation. That shift is not magical; it is the result of consistent practice and kind persistence. Self-mastery grows in increments, each morning at a time.
Action: Troubleshooting Common Obstacles
If you try this and find resistance, here are common obstacles and how to work with them:
- Habitual reactivity: You always wake up anxious or hurried. Start with a micro-practice—one deep breath and one-word intention. Over time expand it.
- Feeling fake: Choosing a positive feeling can feel forced. Choose a neutral state like steady or grounded and lean into curiosity about how that feels.
- Busy mornings: If you rush, place your intention on a sticky note at your door or set a one-minute alarm to remind you to pause.
- Setbacks: Expect them. Use them as data, not evidence you failed. Recommit each morning; that is the essence of self-mastery.
Persistence beats perfection. The goal isn't to never stray; it's to build reliable practices that bring you back.
Desire: Small Habits That Support the Practice
Pairing this question with tiny habits increases your chance of success. Here are micro-habits that support choosing your emotional state and deepen your self-mastery:
- Place a small card by your bed that reads: “What do I want to feel today?”
- Pair the question with brushing your teeth—ask it while you brush.
- Set a phone background with your favorite chosen emotion word.
- Keep a one-line journal: “Today I chose: ____.” End each night with one line of reflection.
These tiny nudges reduce friction and create reminders that anchor your intention to real-world cues. Habit stacking is a proven path to consistent practice, and consistency is the engine of self-mastery.
Interest: What to Expect Over Weeks and Months
Initially, the change is subtle. You may notice fewer extreme mood swings or more moments where you act intentionally. After several weeks, you’ll have a growing awareness of how your morning choice influences outcomes. After months, you’ll find your default orientation shifting toward the feelings you choose most often. That slow momentum is how enduring change occurs: one intentional morning after another.
Self-mastery is not a destination you arrive at; it is a lifelong practice. The good news is that the morning question is a compact, effective practice that yields outsized returns. The more you invest, the more you get back in clarity, emotional stability, and aligned action.
Action: Final Checklist to Start Tomorrow
Before you go to sleep tonight, set a simple intention. Then tomorrow morning:
- Pause before your phone.
- Take three deep breaths.
- Ask: “What do I want to feel today?”
- Choose honestly and hold that feeling lightly.
- Use a tiny anchor to bring yourself back if you drift.
Start small and be consistent. That consistency is the quiet engine of self-mastery. Each morning you choose your emotional state, you are practicing leadership of your inner world—and that leadership shows up in everything you do.
Conclusion: Your Daily Question as a Gateway to Self-Mastery
Remember this: your emotional state is not a random occurrence. It is a daily choice, a morning practice, a way of taking ownership of your inner world. When you ask yourself “What do I want to feel today?” you are practicing the most accessible form of self-mastery: choosing how you will experience your life rather than letting your life choose you.
Over time, this simple question transforms into a habit of presence, clarity, and aligned action. You’ll find that you live more intentionally, respond with more grace, and move closer to the person you want to be. If you're ready to begin, make a small commitment right now: tomorrow morning, before anything else, stop, breathe, and ask your question. Treat it as a gift to yourself—a short practice that yields long-term dividends for your well-being and your path to self-mastery.
If you found these ideas helpful, consider making them part of your daily routine. Rate and review what supports you, and remind yourself each night to choose again. Consistency over time is how transformation happens—and each morning gives you a new, powerful opportunity to practice self-mastery.
Until next time, be civil to one another out there, and remember: you get to choose how you feel today. Choose with intention and compassion, and let that choice guide your day.
View the full video here: How to Choose Your Emotional State Every Morning