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1-Page Summary of How to Stop Worrying and Start Living

Overview

When you’re working on something, it’s important to take breaks. It will help you relax and get back to work refreshed and ready to make more progress.

Everyone worries. It affects our health in a negative way, and it’s easy to overlook the damage that worrying does to us. Plato realized how closely linked the mind and body are, and scientists have proven that stress can be damaging. In fact, many people spend half their time in hospitals because of worry or frustration.

Worrying is bad for your health. In fact, it can cause a lot of problems that range from arthritis to diabetes. The evidence suggests that worrying can lead to marital issues and financial problems, which are also bad for your health.

Unfortunately, there are many things in the workplace that can cause worry. Stress levels tend to be higher and workers may suffer from heart disease or ulcers. There is also a high mortality rate for doctors than farmers due to heart failure.

If you are in a stressful job, worrying can cause an ulcer or worse.

Big Idea #1: Confusion can cause worry. You should find out more about your worries and solve the problem.

If you were told on Sunday evening that, come Monday morning, you would be thrown into a torture chamber, how would you feel? Would it cause worry? Probably. However, there are ways to deal with those worries and confusion is the chief cause of worry. According to Herbert E. Hawkes Dean of Columbia College in New York City people should analyze their situation before worrying about anything else. That’s what Galen Litchfield did when he was stuck in Japanese-occupied Shanghai during World War II and got news that a Japanese admiral had found out about his hidden assets from the Japanese secret police who were going to throw him into a torture chamber on Monday if they discovered them.

His solution was to take a typewriter and write down what he was worried about.

Second, he analyzed those facts. He wrote “What can I do about it?” and listed his options like fleeing the situation or explaining himself.

So, Litchfield decided to go into work as if nothing had happened. The Japanese admiral scowled at him but didn’t say anything.

When you look at this carefully, it becomes clear that analyzing your worries can be very helpful.

Big Idea #2: Once you’ve decided to take action, don’t look back.

Have you ever made a decision and then questioned whether it was the right one? People often wonder about this. They think, “Was I wrong?” or “Should I have done something else instead?”

It’s common for people to analyze their worries, but this can be very damaging. After you’ve analyzed your worries and decided how to solve them, don’t go back and reanalyze the situation. You’ve already made a decision on what to do so act decisively on it and dismiss all doubt about that course of action. Even if you have any doubts at all, they will lead to more doubts unraveling everything you already did in analyzing the problem.

Once you’ve made a decision, don’t change your mind. Otherwise, you’ll waste time and energy going back to square one.

Big Idea #3: People should live for today, and not worry about yesterday or tomorrow.

Have you ever spent a night tossing and turning, thinking about something that happened in the past or might happen in the future? Most people have. But to what end?

It’s pointless to worry about the past or future. Writer Stephen Leacock described this absurdity by describing a child who says, “When I grow up” and then when he grows up, “When I’m married.” As a grown-up he thinks, “When can retire?” When retired, it will be too late to enjoy what you have now because time passes fast.