Many people sabotage their own chances of success through a self-defeating attitude known as forecasting. Forecasting involves overestimating the chances that negative outcomes will occur. It is often expressed in the form of “what if?”, e.g., “what if I ask and they say no?”. One of the best stress-reduction techniques is to suspend these “what ifs” unless and until you have evidence supporting them. Often, there is none. You can confirm this by tracking all the worries you’ve had in the past month, and counting how many of them came true. Most likely, few did. Then, instead of forecasting negative outcomes, you can focus on anticipating positive ones.
Key Takeaways:
- Forecasting is when the mind predicts negative outcomes even during positive circumstances.
- What ifs are exaggerated negative thoughts that stream through your mind and you latch onto them as facts.
- Stay open about the future and let things happen instead of stressing out about what might happen.
“Truth be told, most things you worry about never happen or at least not in the way you imagine”