Do you know that feeling?
You’re sitting there daydreaming – your thoughts are immersed in the recent vacation – you can remember the hours with the kids, the peace and tranquility – perhaps the warmth and scents around you…
In short, you’re daydreaming! You’re lost in thought, staring blankly ahead, not seeing what you see or hearing what’s happening around you.
Or you’re driving home from work after a long day – thoughts racing, and suddenly you look up and think, “How on earth did I end up here?” Do you know that feeling?
In fact, you’ve experienced what is psychologically called a “cognitive attention syndrome.” It’s a very common phenomenon we all experience but don’t attach much significance to.
But what if you were sitting there with your head filled with worries: lots of thoughts about something that COULD happen but hasn’t happened yet… and you couldn’t see a way out of it… If a colleague came and said something to you – something you heard but didn’t really hear because you were lost in your own thoughts… what importance would you attach to not remembering it?
Stress arises because we have all our thoughts focused on something specific: future scenarios, something that hasn’t happened yet – it’s imagination/fiction – and if there’s no solution included in these thoughts, well, then you actually have a worry… Worries are the basis for stress…
We believe that it’s important to worry because otherwise, we’re not prepared – we’re not ready IF the terrible thing we imagine were to happen.
We feel that we gain a sort of control if we just worry enough – if we think through all possible situations (but they rarely include solutions – they’re just horror scenarios) – then we’re READY – SET – GO…
But mostly, no…!!!
We give something a completely wrong focus – a completely wrong attention.
It surprises me daily that NO ONE has previously defined the very specific thought process that creates stress, anxiety, and unrest… NO ONE.
It’s so painfully simple – actually quite straightforward – so BLATANTLY simple that maybe that’s why no one has looked precisely there.
When I realized what creates stress, I was amazed myself – didn’t fully believe it, and it took most of a couple of years to test the theory, find the method, and develop it into a simple and effective tool… and even today, I’m amazed at how often people quickly and easily embrace it.
Just because something is difficult doesn’t mean it has to be difficult…!
