We can’t be free from all anxiety, what if a car is veering into our lane? What if we need to correct a mistake? It’s unnecessary anxiety that causes the most harm to us. The stuff that keeps us up at night or distracts us from work, causing mistakes. The rumination about “should I have said that”?
One tip: ask yourself, can I solve this, and if yes, can I or should I right now? If yes, great. Consider if I have what I need or do I need help or resources. As you work through it and if you don’t have what you need, ask yourself if you can plan a time to follow up and then think of a mental file folder to put the worry into.
Example: I need to prepare to give a presentation so I plan a 2 hour block to work on it but find that I need to check with my colleague on some of the content. I will utilize that time period to do what I can on the presentation, to email or call my colleague to arrange a time to get the info., And then remind myself mentally to file this project away until that follow up time. By doing this, I can better focus on the next task.
Harder topics can be conversations in which we felt confusion, hurt etc. One solution for those moments can be to journal our feelings to get to the heart of what we need to solve. Ex. a friend let us down, or we felt criticized.
Here are some more ideas for various anxious moments:
Some books:
Podcasts:
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