Hear me out. If we were to go into a job interview and were just really blasé. The interviewer asked us questions and we shrugged our shoulders dismissively. Would we seem interested in the job offer? Imagine the next person walks in and is vibrating with energy, replies with animation and vigor. What a difference!
How does this relate to anxiety? Think about what we feel, an energy, a fervor, a fire. Brene Brown says that fear and excitement have the exact same response neurophysiologically. Therefore, instead of fear we are experiencing, how about focus on the energy. Instead of losing control of our response, how about we focus on how passionate we are? Without having to do a thing, our bodies are giving us a big blazing sign. Thank you! We don’t have to work up the energy to care. Boom. We are engaged, cannot think of another thing if we tried (so we are fully focused on the big picture) and we are prioritizing the quality of our work to this task.
How many people out there have not a clue what truly excites them? How many people are stuck in the same mundane patterns because it is reliably comfortable? How many people wish they could shake themselves into caring, or waking up, but they just cannot? If we think about the strongest grief we have ever felt, could we not summon the understably debilitating exhaustion of grief? Maybe, just maybe, consider the off-chance that anxiety is a gift?
Anxiety is like a fire that churns bright within us. Blazing our insides uncontrollably so we cannot just sit and ignore it. It commands our attention, our presence, our work ethic and desire for quality. It pushes us, while also lifting up those around us. If we recall being in the presence of someone anxious, did we not feel their high-frequency energy? Did it not make us want to get up and help?
“If we change the way we look at things, the things we look at change.”
Let us try it for a day, pretend that truly, deeply, we believe that anxiety is a gift. Say it over and over again until we can unclench our jaws. Come up with some examples (try as if we chose to believe) of how our anxious fervor has inspired us into action, or inspired those around us into action. Just play around with it! What is the worst that could happen?
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