Worrying – Is it Helping?
Worrying. Seems to be pretty common these days – and for some people, it is the way they function consistently. But, here’s what I will put forth for consideration in this post:
Most of what people worry about is probably not worth worrying about.
I know that is not exactly a radical idea, however it seems that people could use a reminder about this. If you are a worrier, then do the following activity for yourself. If, on the other hand, it’s the people around you who are worrying all the time, then pose these questions to them – either formally or informally. I promise you that it will get some discussions going with your colleagues, family, or friends – or just internally.
Either answer the following questions at separate times or go ahead and do them all at once. It depends on what you (or others) need to do to help the concept ‘sink in.’
- 20 years ago this month, I was worrying about…
- 10 years ago this month, I was worrying about…
- 5 years ago this month, I was worrying about…
- 1 year ago this month, I was worrying about…
- Last week, I was worrying about…
- Today, I was worrying about…
Hmmm….so was this an eye opener for you? Depending on your age, you may not even remember 20 years ago – and I think I will go out on a limb here and say that if you DO remember what you were worrying about, it has obviously worked itself out in such a way that you’ve continued to function and, dare I say, thrive, in spite of whatever it was.
Keep going down the list. As you get closer to the present time, the issues or concerns will become more real and may indeed still be issues that you are worried about. To close the loop for yourself, you might project out about what you’ll be worrying about tomorrow, a week from now, a month from now, a year from now…and so on up to 20 years from now. And if 20 years from now, you’ll be worried about whether your family cremated you as you had asked, then maybe you’ll recognize that what you’re worrying about now is survivable.
If you insist on worrying, be sure to spend your time worrying about what is controllable and eschew spending ANY time worrying about what you can’t control. If you take this advice to heart, you will eliminate vast numbers of worry issues because in life, what we can actually control is miniscule compared to what we can’t.
Don’t fret about things you can’t do anything about.
And if worrying is just one area that overwhelms you – and you would like to be ‘just whelmed,’ then you’re invited to join others (worldwide) who receive Meggin’s weekly emails (free!) at
**I Want to Be Just Whelmed (http://www.JustWhelmed.com)
If you would prefer quick, short weekly tips, then the follow site is another place to find suggestions and other tools to support you in your quest for peaceful productivity:
**Top Ten Productivity Tips (http://www.TopTenProductivityTips.com)
(c) 2009 by Meggin McIntosh, Ph.D., “The Ph.D. of Productivity”(tm). Through her company, Emphasis on Excellence, Inc., Meggin McIntosh changes what people know, feel, dream, and do. Sound interesting? It is!
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