Show lers LETS TALK ABOUT BY CHARLES B ROTH GIVE YOURSELF TO A CHAIR A friend of the late william james greatest psychologist of his day asked the noted man if he would mind giving a few rules for the improvement of personality one rule I 1 will give you re spondee dr james a simple rule but so important the rule is this learn to give yourself up to a chair at least once each day mystified the inquirer asked what dr james meant when he said give yourself up to a chair practice conscious relaxation he was told relax every day relaxation particularly the ease and restfulness associated with utter relaxation Is one of the best aids I 1 know in developing a charming personality how often one sees these futile run arounds men and women who are busy from morning till night who never relax who dash from one th ng to another who fidget and fume who talk rapidly who burn up y energy and tire themselves and everyone else out by their fruitless display of waste motion and how rarely one finds the composed re labed personality of power dr james advice was of course purely physical all you had to do was to give yourself up to the chair relax utterly let your body sag where it would but there is al ways a subtle and marked relation ship between mind and body and the purpose of his counsel was to let your mental moods take then tone from your physical department what mental mood can you ex hect if it you are always physical physically tense he inquired |