Don't worry, be happy

'I have lived a long life and had many troubles, most of which never happened.'
Mark Twain

Are you a worrier? Do you feel anxious about the future? Do you scare yourself with your thoughts? Do you imagine yourself into all sorts of dreadful situations and scenarios which never come to pass?

Worry is the biggest waste of resources ever - it wastes time and energy, it causes restless nights and interrupted sleep patterns, it wakes you up in the early hours of the morning and can destroy your health. After a night spent worrying, lack of sleep makes you feel bad and muddles your thinking. This means that you accomplish less, make more mistakes and end the day feeling terrible.

Worry never made the worried-about event less likely to happen. In fact, many people believe the opposite to be true - the Law of Attraction states that you attract what you think about and focus on.

Maybe you are the type of person who has fallen into the regular habit of imagining everything that could possibly go wrong with whatever you plan - you can probably actually picture the ensuing total catastrophe in your head in glorious Technicolor. However, since you have complete freedom to imagine the outcome of any situation, wouldn't it be better to put all that time and energy into imagining a successful outcome instead? To use your powerful imagination to conjure up a wonderful triumph where everything goes exceptionally well, everyone co-operates, your goals are achieved and you end up covered in glory and feeling wonderful?

Think back to this time last year. What were you worried about then? Did what you were worrying about actually happen? How about 5 years ago? Or 10?  How much time do you estimate that you have spent worrying about things that have never happened over the last 10 years?

Imagine the worst-case scenario - the absolute worst thing that could happen in any given situation. What could you do now to ensure that this won't be a problem in the future? Think about what you would do and how you would cope. Draw up a contingency plan. Make sure everyone knows their part in the plan. Buy anything you need to buy. Set up any strategies, systems or routines you need to set up. Make any arrangements you need to make. Then relax and forget about it.

For example:

Worst case scenario

There will be a bird flu pandemic.  So many people will be sick that:
• power stations will close down
• there will be no food in the shops
• hospitals will have no staff
• petrol stations will run out of petrol
• our tap water will be unsafe to drink
• the country will grind to a halt

What could you do now to prepare for such an eventuality?

Make a list.  Work through it.  Then relax.