Worry doesn’t prevent tomorrow’s troubles – it only steals today’s peace.

Is worrying a misuse of the imagination? So much of our worrying is spent anticipating events that haven’t happened yet – imagining how situations might unfold, how others might react, or what we should say in response, often having long dialogues in our heads, some the length of a short novel!

Worry, whether it’s a broken nail, deciding what to make for dinner, concern over a friend’s well-being, or anxiety about your children’s future, all worry follows the same pattern. It drags us into a future that doesn’t yet exist, filling our minds with scenarios that may never come to pass and using much of our energy that could be well spent on more creative pursuits.

Worry thrives on uncertainty. It feeds on the unknown and keeps us stuck in an endless loop of “what ifs”. But in reality, most of the things we worry about either resolve themselves or turn out far less catastrophic than we imagined. Instead of expending energy on rehearsing potential disasters, why not focus on how we want to show up in each moment?

When we worry, we remove ourselves from the present. We get lost in stories of what might happen rather than experiencing what is happening. These imagined scenarios can feel so real that they hold us back, making us hesitant to take action. But what if, instead, we remained open to the unexpected? What if we embraced the idea that things could turn out better than we feared?

Next time worry creeps in, shift your focus. Ground yourself in the now. Take a breath. Ask yourself: Can I trust this to unfold in a good way? If so, lean into that trust. If not, let it go. Redirect your imagination toward possibility, creativity, and solutions rather than anxiety.

Worry doesn’t prevent tomorrow’s troubles – it only steals today’s peace. Choose to be a warrior, not a worrier, and watch how your world transforms.