A continuation of this post…
It’s baffling to think about really how much the world does revolve around money. It really does make the world go ‘round. This is ever so present by the current economic downturn the world is experiencing.
But the whole scope of it all is really confusing, unless you’re a fine-tuned economist.
It’s almost like organized chaos – everything seems so tumultuous when you turn on the TV and watch the news, when you hear about it at work, or how it is such a common denominator in casual conversation with others.
What’s also quite common is the fear that has resulted. People are scared, so they are taking sometimes drastic actions to protect themselves. This, of course, is a natural reaction. When there seems to be danger looming, our instincts tell us to take action.
But is the danger over amplified? Of course this is up for speculation, but of course there is danger; hence, there are fearful reactions.
The overall sense of abundance and security that many people are used to feeling is becoming threatened by this danger that we keep hearing about. Our neighbors are losing their homes to foreclosure. Our friends are losing their jobs. The investment accounts are losing their value. Prices are rising. Education is becoming too expensive. And on, and on, and on. What a mind spin this can cause! Turning on the news can just give us all a big headache and rush of anxiety. All this bad news causes us to think “what if it happened to me?”
We don’t know what is around the corner, but we want answers, so our minds conjure up a variety of worrisome scenarios. What if we lose our jobs and can no longer afford to put the kids through college? What if we can’t pay the mortgage? What if we lose our retirement? What if the economy doesn’t recover soon? What will we do?
What if we’re thinking about things all wrong?
Fear breeds uncertainty, and it is this uncertainty that is creating undue stress for many of us.
When we feel we must be certain of everything, and cannot tolerate any what ifs with regards to the current situation, our minds start to race. We cannot get it out of our heads, because we cannot find the certainty we need. Our minds are looking toward the future, and wanting to know when everything is going to get better. We keep trying to find answers, but they are nowhere to be found. We keep trying to overanalyze if we have made the right decisions, only to find a myriad of other questions. We try to find blame for what is going on, but that just adds more resentment and negative feelings. Everything seems more and more complicated, stressful, and frustrating. How can we help ourselves?
If you can identify with these scenarios, you can stop this fearsome cycle while still taking steps to ensure that you have your bases covered financially.
Acceptance. Now it is natural to feel a sense of angst with regards to what is going on. There has been incredible greed and mismanagement by the powers that be out there, so when I say “acceptance,” by no means am I saying that anyone should become complacent. What I am saying is that, in your own personal life, accepting whatever situation you are in, while committing to weather it to its fullest extent, with a goal in mind of coming through as unscathed as possible, will only help you reduce stress.
Let me explain. When you try to avoid, escape, or sugarcoat your situation, and look at it with a sense of denial or extreme negativity, then it just makes it harder to live with. When you are always trying to escape whatever pain is at hand, the process that you may use to assuage it may end up causing you more complications in the long run. In many ways, it may hinder progress toward a long-term solution, and this hindrance may only exacerbate the anxiety in general.
When you are accepting something for what it is, in many ways, it can help you let go of the negativity associated with it, allowing more room to make the adjustments necessary to live with your situation and make the most of it. When you perceive something as something you must accept and deal with, while being determined to work toward better days, then your current reality will just become more bearable.
Now this may give you some things to ponder to start with, and as this will be an ongoing discussion that may cover a couple more posts, I will leave off here for now. Check back soon for a continuation…
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