If you’re going to fabricate events in your future, why not create exciting stories instead of stories that produce anxiety?
I’m so curious as to why our brains choose to create anxiety inducing future outcomes when they have the power to create any story they want. Why do we choose to think in the worst case scenario when we could be thinking the opposite? Or do we not have a choice in the matter?
When we have a big speech coming up and we begin thinking about standing in front of a crowd, we start to get nervous – “What if I choke and can’t speak?”, “What if they laugh at me?”, “My word, what if I piss myself on stage?!”. It seems like more often than not, these are the stories we fabricate when considering the future.
I read an article that said “The true cause of anxiety is being a human being, gifted with the capacity to imagine a future.” Uncertainty leads to us preparing for events we cannot predict and events that are incredibly unlikely. That’s the burden of being human – being able to think of any outcome imaginable, no matter how outlandish.
If we have the ability to imagine our future, why not imagine one we’re excited for, one that motivates us, or shows a better version of yourself? Maybe I’m wrong, but I think we aren’t trying hard enough to do so.
Maybe you can’t yet control the initial burst of anxiety and story formulation, but I believe you have control over the rest of the narrative. If you catch yourself writing dramas, put down the pen and start a new story. Start coming up with a more upbeat narrative that puts you at ease or encourages you to move forward.
Instead of “What could go wrong?” ask yourself “What could go right?”, then let your brain mull on that for a bit. Maybe it’ll take effort the first few times you try this, but do whatever you can to come up with best case scenarios, no matter how ridiculous they may seem.
You’ve overcome everything you’ve feared thus far, so you know you can do it again. Worrying about the moment before it happened likely didn’t help you prepare in any way, so try your best to switch your anxiety to peace.
You’re the author, you choose what you write, so write a story you’ll want to hear.
August 8, 2022
