The One Mindset Shift I Needed

I think all of us tend to play the ‘what if’ game from time to time, or even on a daily basis. We play mental games to try and prepare ourselves for the worst case scenarios…

What if I lose my job or my business fails?
What if that person never speaks to me again?
What if I messed up in too big of a way to ever come back?
What if…the list goes on, and I’m sure you have no trouble filling in the blanks with your own fears and worries.

I tend to be a fairly optimistic person, and I generally do not struggle with anxiety over the past, present, or future. However, the last year especially has presented me with a hundred different scenarios that have the tendency to keep me up at night wondering about what would happen if….

When I started having trouble sleeping, and when I realized that these anxious thoughts were starting to dominate my life, I knew I needed to change. While I’m a firm believer in counseling and have been through it more than once, I was not able to get the help I needed from an outside source right when I needed it. I began to brainstorm and try to figure out ways to make my mind be at ease once again.

And then, the (very) obvious solution hit me: what if everything worked out better than I could imagine? I started shifting every single negative thought and doubt in my head…

What if my business grows more this year than ever before?
What if I keep the people in my life who are most important to me?
What if that relationship does get better over time?
What if forgiveness is extended to me when I need it most?
What if I can find a way through and come to the other side better than ever?

The possibilities opened up, and my world changed a little bit in that moment. Every time I am hit with an anxious thought or worry about the worst case scenario, I am now choosing to flip the question on its head and ask myself ‘what if the BEST thing happened in this case?’

I know that the best thing won’t always happen, but neither will the worst always take place, and spending my time wondering about what can or will happen is not going to change the result. Instead, I want to choose to focus on the best possible outcome, and if there is a way to get there I want to find it.

Rather than dwelling on what will happen if the world comes tumbling down around me, I’m going to build it, brick by brick, one piece at a time, until the end result is better than I can imagine. And this is the mindset shift I needed to finish the year out strong.

Oh and by the way - this did turn out to be my best year of business yet!