The 3 Second Flip

He was adjusting his cufflinks when I noticed the socks.

Bright red. Loud enough to be seen from the back row if he crossed his legs just right.

After the talk, someone finally asked Ed why.

He smiled like he’d been waiting for it.

“They’re my anchor,” he said. “I’m always in one of two states. I’m either up… or I’m getting up.”

That line stuck to me harder than anything else he said on stage.

Because if you work with ambitious professionals as we do, you know this pattern.

We think confidence is a personality trait.

We think stress means we’re failing.

But what if anxiety isn’t proof that you’re not cut out for it?

What if it’s just the “getting up” state?

It sounds almost too simple. Maybe even cheesy. I rolled my eyes a little too.

But our nervous system loves simplicity.

It loves signals.

That’s what the red socks were. A signal.

Not to impress anyone.

To remind himself of who he was being.

Here’s the insight: You don’t eliminate anxiety to become confident.

You decide what state you’re in.

Up.

Or getting up.

Both move forward.

Try this. I call it The 3-Second Flip.

1. Pick a tiny physical anchor. A ring you twist. A watch you tap. A pen you click once. Something small and repeatable.

2. Decide right now what it means. When you touch it, you are “getting up.” Not spiraling. Not failing. Getting up.

3. The next time stress hits — shoulders creeping up, jaw tight before a meeting — touch your anchor and quietly say, “Getting up.”

4. Stand or sit one inch taller. Yes, one inch. It feels silly. Do it anyway. Your body believes posture faster than thoughts.

HINT: Don’t wait for a meltdown to try it. Practice when you’re calm so your brain links the cue to control.

This isn’t magic.

You’ll still have deadlines. Pressure. That email you don’t want to open.

But now you have a switch.

And switches create space.

The next time you’re sitting in your car outside the office, hands still on the steering wheel, heart doing that fast drumroll thing before you walk in…

Touch your anchor.

Getting up.

Watch what happens to your breathing.

You are not broken.

You’re just in one of two states.

And both lead to confidence if you let them.

Cheering for you — even in the “getting up” moments.

Mark "Red Socks" Morley

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