“Our worst misfortunes never happen, and most miseries lie in anticipation.” – Honore de Balzac
We all have pessimistic tendencies, and there are times we convince ourselves the worst scenario is our reality. But how often is that truly the case? We get ourselves all worked up, stressed and scared about something that potentially will never happen. As the quote says, the misery is in the anticipation. The worry we work up over an imaginative scenario is typically worse than what the scenario ends up being. Maybe you lose a client and you begin to tell yourself and start to believe that your business is deteriorating and in a few months you’ll have nothing left. Is that the reality? Probably not. Or maybe you make a mistake at work and all night you’re up convincing yourself that the next day all your clients are going to fire you you’ll be humiliated and jobless. That may be a stretch, but you see where I’m going with this!
More often than not the scenario we imagine and worry and fret over is a lot worse than what it ends up being. So much energy is lost when we do this! All that negative energy and those pessimistic thoughts drastically decreases our productivity and, if done frequently, decreases our quality of life.
We can’t control and micromanage life -bad things are always going to happen, but your reaction has the power to make the situation even worse.
Where does worrying get us? Where does dreading the consequences of a mistake get us? All we’re doing is wasting time – time that could be spent appreciating all that we have. Worrying has no power; it won’t make a bad situation better, it makes a bad situation worse. And anticipating the worst outcome can damage your business, relationships, and health. If you’re in a bad situation, think positive! Don’t sit around sulking about what “might be” enjoy “what is”!
Photo by Elizabeth Messina via Kiss the Groom
*this post was originally published 0ct ’10
omg, i’m so bad at this. i ALWAYS imagine the worst case scenario.
THANK YOU for this post today. All too often these worries creep into my mind and I need to learn to appreciate what I have. It’s all about a positive attitude and counting your blessings everyday! Thank you! 🙂
AMEN!
I’m so glad I’m not the only one who feels this way… so many sleepless nights worrying about something that never even happens… I’d have so much more free time looking back if I just hadn’t worried about EVERYTHING! Thanks so much Leila for this wisdom!
ha! this is so perfect for me right now, thank you so much.
Wonderful post Leila, you are so right! I’m such a worrier too, so this really hit home.
Worry is my middle name! But you’re right, usually we worry for no reason b/c things are never as bad as they seem…
“worrying has no power”… well said!
You are so right. I worry about the future way too much. Thanks for reminding us what’s really important in life.
THANK YOU!
so so true!! ps. that vera wang gown shot by elizabeth is to DIE for!!!
@weddingPR reminds me of something my dad always told me growing up. “99.9% of the things we worry about never come true.” Words I live by.
worrying gives you wrinkles! ALWAYS stay positive! That means you @dse_sara http://bit.ly/hObb50 (via @weddingpr )
@DSpinnerEvents @weddingpr So True! Thanks for the reminder:)
Worrying is like a carousel. It gets you no where. RT @weddingPR Where does worrying get us?… http://bit.ly/hObb50
LOVE this! Worrying is crippling and exhausting! Don’t worry! Be happy!