5 ways to let go of unproductive worry

“Worry is just imagination used in an unproductive way.”

-Andy Andrews

Uncertainty is a natural part of life. However, most times, uncertainty leads to worries. In this way, they destroy performance, causing us to doubt ourselves, turning our experience of life into frustration and disappointment. Therefore, in order to let go of worries, you need to firstly make the difference between productive and unproductive worries:

Productive worry

This is a type of worry within your control about which you can do something. This kind of worry is positive because it urges you to take action. This could be worrying that you don’t have enough money and taking action to find a better job. Likewise, in sports, it could be worrying that one of your strokes is not good enough. And thus urging yourself to spend more time practicing it. All in all, productive worry is constructive because it triggers action, helps us cope and prepare new strategies.

Unproductive worry

This involves worrying about things that are out of your control. For example, worrying about whether you’ll win or lose, the outcome, what other people might think about you, or whether you’ll achieve your goal or not will all fall into the unproductive bucket. Moreover, these thoughts generate feelings of nervousness and anxiety which will make your fear even more likely to happen. Without taking control of your worry, your focus will be on the “big bad wolf”. In such a way, you’ll definitely lose confidence and get distracted from what you can actually do about it at that given moment.

Now, here’re some tips to help you let go of unproductive worry:

1. Focus on what you can control.

Stop worrying about things you can’t control. Instead, just focus on what you can do right here, right now. Ask yourself this simple question: Is there anything I can do to make it better?. If the answer is “yes”, then you need to be resourceful and take action.

However, if you can’t do anything about it, accept the situation the way it is, detach yourself from the thought, and let it go. Stop stressing out about what might happen. Instead, use this worry to plan your courses of action in different possible scenarios. Imagine how you would respond and what strategies you could use. But most importantly, trust the process and your fate. By doing so, you can assure yourself that you can deal with anything coming up. After all, everything that happens is just for your best if you zoom out the entire picture of your life.

2. Spend some time reflecting upon what troubles you.

Don’t just resist the worries. It doesn’t help to avoid them either. Rather than that, write them down, and see what you can do about it. Are they actually significant and are they even worth worrying? You might also find that your fears are False Evidence Appearing Real!

3. Notice when you start overthinking

It’s extremely significant to notice when your mind drifts off as soon as possible. Because otherwise, too much “daydreaming” could result into an unpleasant accident due to lack of awareness. To reduce overthinking, it’s always efficient to meditate and practice noting of thoughts and emotions. In other words, notice when your worry bothers you, label whether it’s productive or unproductive, and lastly let go of it.

4. Distract your thoughts from the problem for a short while

The mind could be complicated at times, so it’s important to keep yourself busy with whatever activity you enjoy, so you can maintain your thoughts simple and concrete, without too much wandering through the future or past. However, you can’t avoid the problem forever. Even if you try to resist it, the gnawing thoughts keep on coming. So, once you take a break for a while, your mind is relaxed and ready to manage the problem. This procedure reduces overwhelm and helps one handle situations with more calm.

5.  Switch the channel in your head

Lastly, the perspective from which we view things matters most. This includes the way you respond to challenges and tough situations. For example, you could substitute fear of an outcome with excitement about the process and what positive opportunities it could bring. Therefore, make the decision to switch your focus from what you fear might happen to what you can do to be prepared every time you catch it sliding towards the dark side. Change the channel in your head, and return to the actions that will help you achieve your goals.

Finally, you need to understand that even when your mind starts to get away from you,  you have the choice to shift your mindset once you become aware of your thoughts. Smile at it, because it’s just an old habit of negative thinking, and let it go.

Here’s the quote for this article. It perfectly emphasizes how people waste time worrying about things they imagine and predict, which are insignificant, and which don’t even exist. Take some time to reflect upon it! 🙂

“The human imagination, at times the great tool of creation, is at other times our bane, as it snoops into crevices of life to find, or even create, phantoms of devils of every species and style, ready to tease and torment us as we attempt to pass the day in peace.”

-Edward Hallowel