Everyone knows that worrying doesn’t accomplish a thing and yet most of us do it from time to time. Some people do it so well that if it was an Olympic event they could easily be a gold medal contender.

So why do you do it and how can you stop?

The reason you worry is that you fear that something is going to happen that you don’t want to happen. You think that by somehow worrying about it you are doing something to prevent it. What you are actually doing is focusing on what you don’t want rather than what you do want to happen. Typically, people worry when they have no control over the outcome of something. If you have control and are actually able to take action to prevent this real or imagined event from occurring, then do so.

For instance, if you’re a student and you’re worried that you won’t pass an upcoming exam then what should you do? Stop worrying and spend more time studying and preparing. Once you’ve done everything in your power to ensure the desired outcome there is nothing more that needs to be done. Even if you didn’t prepare as well as you should have, worry and fear will not help the situation. Being relaxed and confident about the outcome will make it easier to focus your mind’s energy on doing your best and achieving the desired results on the day of the exam.

If you find that you are worrying about someone else because of his or her actions, then share your concerns with them. If there is something you can do to help, that’s fine if you have the time, energy, and desire to do so as long as they want help. If the person is engaging in harmful actions and has no desire to stop, then there may be a life lesson they need to learn. You cannot learn it for them; it’s something they must experience for themselves.

When you worry, all you’re really doing is harming yourself by directing energy towards the problem instead of the solution. If you’re worrying about someone’s health the best thing you can do is to take action by preventing them from worrying. Try doing this with humor. In the book The Secret, there were stories of two people who used laughter to heal themselves. After being diagnosed with breast cancer Cathy Goodman immediately began to believe that she had been healed and everyday went around saying, "Thank you for my healing". Rather than feel sad, she made a conscious decision to surround herself with laughter. She allowed herself to think only positive thoughts as she was determined to assist her body in it’s own healing. She watched funny movies every night and directed her focus on being healthy. Three months later she was cancer free. A man named Norman Cousins inspired her. Norman had been diagnosed with an incurable disease and so for three months all he did was watch funny movies. As he laughed, he released negativity and he released the disease. Three months later, he was disease free. His doctors thought his recovery was a miracle.

Three words you should immediately remove from your vocabulary are fear, worry, and can’t. Worry is fear-based thinking. As Franklin D. Roosevelt so astutely remarked, "We have nothing to fear, but fear itself." The man knew what he was talking about. So quit worrying. You can do it and laughter really is the best medicine.

Some people believe that negative thoughts are the biggest roadblock to positive thinking.  However, that’s not entirely true.  The greatest enemy of positive thinking is making excuses.  On the surface, excuses appear harmless. If you stop to think about it, excuses can be quite harmful as they can prevent us from growing and achieving our desires.

When you make an excuse, you are usually allowing fear to dictate your choices.  I am not saying you should do things that you don’t want to do.  What I am saying is not to let your fear of something prevent you from doing something else you would really enjoy.
For instance, when we fear things such as crowds, flying, or public speaking, we make excuses as to why we can’t attend an event, go on a trip, or take that new job.  By not conquering these fears, we deprive ourselves of many great experiences. We begin making excuses and soon, we don’t even realize we’re doing it.

Excuses can make becoming a positive thinker very difficult. If you are someone who is accustomed to making excuses, then you will have a hard time becoming a positive thinker unless you stop making excuses.

Excuses can make you believe you are doing something positive when you are not. An excuse is just a negative thought in disguise.  If your excuses are preventing you from living the life you truly desire, how can this be positive?

How many of these excuses have you used?

•    I don’t have enough time
•    I’m too old
•    It would take too long
•    I’m too young
•    I’m too fat
•    I don’t like crowds
•    I’m afraid to fly
•    I don’t look good in a bathing suit
•    I don’t have enough money
•    I don’t have anything to wear
•    I don’t want to get hurt
•    I don’t have the right connections
•    Blah, blah, blah

The list goes on.  Don’t wait for some specific thing to happen before you begin living your life.  I remember once telling my Mother that I didn’t like to go swimming anymore because I didn’t like the way I looked in my bathing suit.  “Don’t be silly,” she replied.  “Life is too short to let it pass you by.  Now go and put on your bathing suit and get outside and enjoy the pool.”  That was great advice.  So make the time, put on that bathing suit, and take that vacation.  Life isn’t a dress rehearsal.

Conquer your fears!  Phil Keoghan, host of The Amazing Race, has an excellent and very inspiring book titled NOW – No Opportunity Wasted.  It begins when Phil is 19 years old and narrowly escapes the jaws of death while diving inside a sunken shipwreck.  After being given a second chance at life, Phil was committed to living every day to the fullest and never letting an opportunity pass him by.

The book is co-authored by wordsmith Warren Berger, who tells Phil’s story in a relatable and entertaining manner.  An entire chapter is devoted to getting rid of excuses and another to facing your fears.  I highly recommend this empowering book.

What about the excuses you give others?  If you have fallen into this pattern, then stop.  Assume responsibility and just tell the truth.

In order to get what you want out of life you have to get rid of the excuses. Think about why you are making a particular excuse. What do you fear and what benefit does this excuse have?

Benjamin Franklin said, “He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.”  Since we improve at whatever we practice, this makes sense.
You can be good at making excuses or good at something more rewarding.  The choice is yours.

Here are some great examples of people with vision.  To them, failures are not failures, but merely stepping stones.

Famous Failures

Have you ever wanted to learn a new skill, start a new career, or take up a new hobby but felt that you were too old? I know I certainly have and on more than one occasion. I remember when I was about 20 years old I considered becoming a Chiropractor. I liked the holistic philosophy of Chiropractic. The idea of treating the problem rather than the symptom made sense to me.

Then I was stricken with fear, yes the dreaded "f" word. I thought that I would be too old by the time I graduated at 26! If I decided to get married someday and have kids, then the schooling might just be a waste of time. Also, it seemed like a long time to wait before beginning a career.

Several years later, after I got married, I toyed with the idea of becoming an Architect. I was probably about 32 at the time and I was working for a builder selling new homes. I enjoyed studying the blueprints and changing things around to make the homes more aesthetically pleasing with improved functionality. Even though I believed I would make an excellent architect, I figured I would be too old by the time I got the degree. Therefore, I didn’t pursue this course of action either.

In retrospect, the whole notion of being too old just seems completely ridiculous: too old for what? If you decide to pursue a goal that takes 10 years to accomplish, then so what? What’s the worst thing that could happen? You could die between now and then and not achieve the goal. What’s the best that could happen? You could still be alive in ten years and now possess a valuable skill that might allow you to earn a very good living. You could master a skill that brings you great joy. Suppose you didn’t pursue this goal. You could look back in ten years regretting that you didn’t follow your dream. You would be asking yourself, "I wonder what would have happened if?"…

I got an e-mail the other day from my good friend, Lisa. She told me about a woman named Sister Madonna Buder and went on to say that this lady was her new hero. Of course, being a nun itself is quite remarkable given the level of sacrifice and dedication that’s required of the position. The thing that really impressed my friend was that this lady participates in triathlons and has even competed in 13 Iron Man triathlons.

An Iron Man consists of a 26.2 mile marathon run, a 2.4 mile swim, and a 112 mile bicycle ride. This would be an incredible accomplishment for the most elite athlete. What makes this feat even more inspiring is that Sister Madonna is 78 years old or in her case, years young. She didn’t take up running until she was 49. She has broken her hip twice, broken her arm, and broken her scapula but she just keeps on going. In fact, she has participated in over 300 triathlons!

Remember it’s not the amount of years in your life that count but the amount of life in your years! If I ever start to feel too old to do something, I’m just going to think of Sister Madonna. Besides, it’s all in how you look at it. Instead of thinking you’re too old just think of how young you’ll stay by pursuing your passions.