Being a human and stress seem to just go together. Anxiety, concern—they follow too. Because there's always something we're worried about. If we don't nail that presentation, we might miss the promotion. You felt tired yesterday, and this morning you have a cough—could it be serious? Oh no, we can't afford to get sick right now.
We're juggling multiple responsibilities. We're making sure we take care of our physical and mental health, and we're striving to achieve our goals. We have bills to pay and mouths to feed. We are sensitive to the slightest changes in our environment, we are nervous about the slightest clouds on the horizon.
It is a modern affliction, but it has also always been this way. Not that it has to be. "I see my child is ill; that's what I see, but I don't see that he's in any danger," Marcus Aurelius writes in Meditations. He was talking about stopping that very human, very natural extrapolation that we do—what is more often described as "catastrophizing." His advice to himself—as a leader, a parent, and a philosopher—was to stick with the "first impression, adding no commentary of your own from within." (Our Anxiety Medallion can help you in this regard.)
Meaning, a cough can just be a cough. A subpar presentation can just be a single data point. Falling short today doesn't have to mean everything is falling apart.
Stop torturing yourself! Be present. Focus primarily on what's in front of you. Resist the impulse to add judgment or speculation to what you're dealing with. Dealing with it alone is sufficient. You'll do better and be less stressed.
P.S. "I escaped anxiety today," Marcus writes in Meditations, before correcting himself. "No, I discarded it, because it is within me."
Stress, anxiety, and concern don't exist outside us but within us—which means we have the power to do something about it, too.
Not only is the Daily Stoic Anxiety Medallion a reminder of this influence you have over anxiety, it also makes a great fidget spinner for you to dispel that nervous energy thanks to the hole at its center. Head here to get yours today!
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