You and I could probably eliminate nine tenths of our worries right now if we would cease our fretting long enough to discover whether, by the law of averages, there was any real justification for our worries.

“Make a worry list,” he said. “What’s a worry list?” I asked. “Exactly what it sounds like. Make a list of every single thing you’re worried about. From the big, truly scary things, to the small, mundane things. Get it all out and onto paper. Then, once it’s all out, look at the list and promise yourself that you will take care of everything on tha

Worry, at its core, is the repetitious experience of a mind attempting to generate a feeling of security about the future, failing, then trying again and again and again—as if the very effort of worrying might somehow help forestall disaster.