9 Anxiety Relief Hacks: Why Worry Is A Waste of Time and What To Do Instead

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I know a lot about worrying. I used to be a chronic worrier. I come from a family of worriers.

But worrying is not time well spent, and time is precious.

Not only is worrying unproductive and a waste of time, it’s based in negativity, imagined dangers and circumstances magnified out of proportion.

It is counterproductive to any of your desires for and efforts toward building a better life.

So, rather than worrying, here’s what you should do instead…

9 Ways To Crush Worry

1. Do your best and leave it there.

Your best is the most anyone can ask of you or you can require of yourself in any given situation.

When you give your all, be content with it. Don’t allow yourself to worry about what you cannot do.

2. When making major decisions, limit yourself to three options that offer the most beneficial outcomes.

After reviewing the options you’ve identified, then select the one you like best and go for it.

3. Release circumstances over which you have no control.

You worrying over something you can do nothing about makes no sense.

Don’t subject yourself to unnecessary and pointless stress.

4. Expect the unexpected.

Life is full of changes, twists and turns and the unexpected.

Anticipate the unexpected.

Twenty-year-old refrigerators stop working.

Tires get flats. Car parts wear out.

Roofs sometimes spring leaks.

Prepare as best you can for events that are genuine possibilities or probabilities so that you aren’t caught off-guard when they happen.

Then when something actually does happen you are ready, you can deal with it and get on with your life.

5. Visualize things going right.

When we’re experiencing important or critical life moments, we tend to search for, identify and focus on all the things that could go wrong.

Train yourself to do the opposite.

As a kid, you were curious, adventurous and got excited about new things and new possibilities.

Learn as an adult to visualize and focus on the GOOD that can come from a situation and pursue that.

6. Realize that mistakes are a part of life.

They’re inevitable.

Embrace the idea that you will make mistakes.

That’s perfectly normal and okay.

Don’t worry about making them in the first place.

7. Liberate yourself from OPP.

As women, especially those of us who are mothers, we worry a lot about others, especially our children no matter their age.

But our grown children, our BFF’s, our significant others and even our co-workers are adults.

We can do nothing to solve their problems, and as harsh as it may seem, worrying about those problems doesn’t help.

So don’t take on other people’s problems.

Be a supportive parent, a loving spouse, a good friend.

That’s your best contribution to whatever situation they may dealing with.

It’s the kindest thing you can do for them, and it will help you to stay in a better place emotionally and in terms of your own health and well-being.

8. Help someone who needs it.

Sometimes excessively worrying about ourselves is a sign we’re too self-focused.

Helping or being a source of encouragement to others shifts our focus, takes our attention away from “self, and places it where it can actually do good.

Helping others also reminds us that we are not powerless.

We are reminded we have something valuable to give.

9. Trust God. (Matthew 6: 25-34)

If you want to change your circumstances for the better, find clarity, get motivated and begin to build a life where you can experience greater success and happiness, but don’t quite know how to go about it, learn how to do that here!

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Kimberly Clay is the founder and creative force behind What She Say. She’s a business professional, writer and editor who’s been creating and managing digital content for nearly twenty years. Her work is now focused in the areas of self-improvement and personal development, and she is passionate about helping other individuals, especially women, to find a path for living their best life.