How do I get rid of this constant anxiety?

[Peakdesire]

I'm 20 years young. Highly driven, ambitious and motivated.

I'm currently writing a blog on fitness and motivation, I'm reading great books every day, reading this forum, watching educational youtube talks & interviews.

But still I feel like I'm not doing enough. I have this constant anxiety that I'm somehow falling behind, not doing enough and wasting time.

I feel like I should be doing more. But I don't know what. I want to make sure I'm doing everything possible so that I succeed.

I want to start a business already. I want to start Failing forward. But I don't know which direction to head, which business to start.

Any advice on how to get rid of this? It's really making me feel like shit and It's hard to be happy with this anxiety.

Thanks in advance.

 

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[Get Right]

Sometimes anxiety can be caused by not having a defined long term plan. Have you tried laying one out yet?

 

[Lex DeVille]

I'm 20 years young. Highly driven, ambitious and motivated.

I'm currently writing a blog on fitness and motivation, I'm reading great books every day, reading this forum, watching educational youtube talks & interviews.

But still I feel like I'm not doing enough. I have this constant anxiety that I'm somehow falling behind, not doing enough and wasting time.

I feel like I should be doing more. But I don't know what. I want to make sure I'm doing everything possible so that I succeed.

I want to start a business already. I want to start Failing forward. But I don't know which direction to head, which business to start.

Any advice on how to get rid of this? It's really making me feel like shit and It's hard to be happy with this anxiety.

Thanks in advance.

Writing a blog on fitness and motivation?

Perfect! Turn some of it into a book and toss it on Amazon.

Your first book will probably fail quickly.

Then you learn and improve.

At the very least you'll be started.

 

[Peakdesire]

Sometimes anxiety can be caused by not having a defined long term plan. Have you tried laying one out yet?

Long term like 10 years? Well i want to be in full entrepreneur mode building businesses, failing, succeeding and enjoying the journey and learning, growing

Doesnt quite reduce my anxiety

 

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[Mattie]

Usually mindfulness, meditation, visualization, brain training, that type of stuff teaches you to discipline your emotions, thoughts, and focus. Reduces stress, and taught me to stay focused on projects and stay in the now. It takes discipline to learn it every day. Other people take pills, do drugs, alcohol, etc. etc. (Not something I would recommend, Negative habits) Some play sports, write in a journal, art, music, you just have to choose what's best for you.

 

[Falco]

I know how you feel and I am sure many others on this forum can relate too.

You may want to consider a couple of things:

1. Information overload
Give your brain time to process the information you consume. Too much information creates the anxiety to describe. The internet
is full of contradictionary views, which can be very confusing and leading to not knowing where to go next.

Advice: Cut out the videos / talks / interviews for a while and see how you feel. In the meantime, concentrate on your blog, read
USEFUL information like how to generate traffic, how to copywrite. Stuff that you can USE later on.


2. False Motivation
Watching motivational videos can give you a temporary boost, but that boost comes from the OUTSIDE.
True drive and motivation comes from the INSIDE. One can train motivation only by estabishing good daily ...

3. ... Habits
Remember, you are just the sum of what you do everyday. It´s your daily training. When you watch countless motivational
videos every day you train just that. Train watching videos ( or reading, etc ).

Advice: Choose one road ( for instance your blog ) and train yourself to work on it everyday. Just a bit.
It will take time to establish that habit. But once it roots in your brain, you will gain momentum.

I think it´s normal to be overwhelmed by the sheer amount of directions when first starting out on all that business stuff.
It takes some time, but your thoughts will settle and you will see the big picture more clearly.


All the best,

Falco

 

[Mattie]

just an example, but put in keyword for anxiety or stress and pick one

 

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[Mattie]

1. Information overload
Give your brain time to process the information you consume. Too much information creates the anxiety to describe. The internet
is full of contradictionary views, which can be very confusing and leading to not knowing where to go next.

Advice: Cut out the videos / talks / interviews for a while and see how you feel. In the meantime, concentrate on your blog, read
USEFUL information like how to generate traffic, how to copywrite. Stuff that you can USE later on.

hmm...yes listen to this. This is my problem. He's a wise man. I've been taking time off this last week, because I overload my brain and than I don't get enough sleep either. It's important to learn this lesson. lol

 

[RogueInnovation]

I still have it.
But it is not as bad as when I started (holy moly was my anxiety high then!)

Its been one of the most IMPORTANT lessons of business to process that anxiety properly
Here are some of my observations
- Anxiety is like revving a car engine in idle, you have to start in first gear, because if you start in 6th, you'll stall
- You have to learn to control the clutch, if you always pull your foot of the clutch fast, you'll gag and stutter
- Torque and acceleration comes from desperation, turned into drive
- Stoke the engine, warm it up, rev it, and play with how it feels regularly
- Grip the wheel in readiness, then loosen up and relax, then grip again, then loosen up

Eventually it should turn into a small burning fire

 

[Get Right]

Long term like 10 years? Well i want to be in full entrepreneur mode building businesses, failing, succeeding and enjoying the journey and learning, growing

Doesnt quite reduce my anxiety

Just try as long a term as you can. If you can plan out 2 years great, 10 awesome, 40 wow.

Bill Gates - “Most people overestimate what they can do in one year and underestimate what they can do in ten years.”

 

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[SJVC]

Hope this helps, if so EFT is a really interesting topic that has helped me a ton.

 

[Kingmaker]

 

[TedLax]

I'm 20 years young. Highly driven, ambitious and motivated.

I'm currently writing a blog on fitness and motivation, I'm reading great books every day, reading this forum, watching educational youtube talks & interviews.

But still I feel like I'm not doing enough. I have this constant anxiety that I'm somehow falling behind, not doing enough and wasting time.

I feel like I should be doing more. But I don't know what. I want to make sure I'm doing everything possible so that I succeed.

I want to start a business already. I want to start Failing forward. But I don't know which direction to head, which business to start.

Any advice on how to get rid of this? It's really making me feel like shit and It's hard to be happy with this anxiety.

Thanks in advance.

So, a couple thoughts:

1. So you have a fitness blog which is a great start. But, what is your goal of the blog? Are you going to offer personal training services? Sell a workout plan/guide? Online Coaching? In my opinion, blogging is a way to create content, drive traffic to your website, SHOW COMPETENCY IN A SUBJECT, add value for free, that will then lead someone to hire you/buy your product. I know there are bloggers who make money selling ads and stuff, but in general, I see blogs as a way of marketing products/services. I think you need so spend less time blogging about fitness and start offering fitness services or products. It may require you to get proper certifications in order to be credible.

2. You use a lot of buzzwords in your post like "fail forward" "enjoy the journey" "build businesses (plural), succeeding, growing. Notice those are all verbs and verbs mean action. I am all for reading books and educating yourself, I am also on board with blogging. But, I think you need to map out a plan (as @Get Right said) even if it's as short your next 30 days. Your plan should include what problem you are going to solve in the fitness journey, and the product or service you are going to create as the solution. I bet you can have a book, a guide, a video series, a webinar or something done by Nov 30. Then, you will set a dollar amount that you want to earn from selling this product/service by Dec 31.

3. Start a progress thread instead of a fastlane thread and give updates each week. This will keep you accountable, allow you to get feedback, and feed off the support of others.

If you do these things above, your anxiety should go away, because you will start getting closer to those buzzwords you talk about and get closer to making your first $1 - which is the point, isn't it? Set aside a certain amount of time (maybe an hour in the AM, an hour in the PM) to do blogging, reading, video watching, etc. The other time should be used on creating the next solution to a problem in the fitness industry.

-Ted

 

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[pickeringmt]

Your anxiety is creative energy that is un-channeled and just building within you. You are not producing enough to be satisfied.

You will never totally be able to get rid of this, because it is basically a form of self-accountability. You need this if you plan to push yourself.

Instead of trying to find ways to ease the anxiety, I suggest you listen to it.

I feel the same way often, but it is fuel for me - because I DO need to do more, I DO need to try harder.

Learn to live outside of your comfort zone.

You don't need to find ways to be happy in your current situation if your current situation is not what you want in life. I'm not saying you shouldn't be grateful for what you have, but not being happy is how you know that change is essential.

 

[Ninjakid]

First disclosure: I am not a doctor, therapist, or licensed physician.

Meditation is a must. Not necessarily only the sitting lotus position meditation, because there are so many other techniques. So experiment with the one that works best for you. Anxiety takes place in the body temple, so it's not something you can just intellectually overcome.

Keep in mind, anxiety is basically extroverted fear, which manifests itself in the body. So, try doing this: do one thing a day that you're afraid of doing. It could be anything, within good taste. Something completely out of your comfort zone. Like, go to a public place, and just start singing or dancing. Or maybe go talk to a girl you like, and just say straight up "hey you're really pretty, and I'd like to go out with you." Don't even think about it, just act.
Practice this a bit, and what you'll find is "hey, I feel pretty good about myself right now. I like how I can do these things which previously scared me."

Don't try to ignore anxiety or abolish it completely. Just become comfortable with yourself so that you can act and still do what you wish to do even when the anxiety is there.

ON the flip-side, if your anxiety is particularly crippling and seriously a detriment to your health, then you should definitely seek professional help. Don't let this issue fester man. Take care of it right away.

 

[Ryllban]

You just got to do it man. I myself feel this all the time. And if there is one thing I HATE, then it is to tell myself: Ok I feel like shit and I accept it because I don't know how to fix it.

Solve the problem. So you don't know where to start? Or do you know but really are to afraid to do anything about it?

So what is my direction to fix this?

Im basically going to start to sell things on amazon and get something going. (the products from manufacturer are being shipped to me as I write this). I don't know shit about selling on amazon. Sure, I have done some reading and my head is overflowed with information. So what I will be doing is throwing myself out there and just LEARN! It's scary but seriously, whats the worst that could happen here? I don't sell anything? Yupp. Not that bad when you think about it.

Also, Im setting up this ad on a site similar to Ebay (A lot like ebay in Sweden). Im going to sell stuff I have at home and learn to write good copy. Im not doing this to make a huge profit. Im doing this to learn to write better copy. Thats a skill you should invest in!

So whats my point?

Just f*ucking do anything! Start anywhere! You can't cure the anxiety in the same way you get anxiety. That means, you got to throw yourself out there and try. Thats how you cure anxiety.

So go start anything! Good luck

 

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[Peakdesire]

I still have it.
But it is not as bad as when I started (holy moly was my anxiety high then!)

Its been one of the most IMPORTANT lessons of business to process that anxiety properly
Here are some of my observations
- Anxiety is like revving a car engine in idle, you have to start in first gear, because if you start in 6th, you'll stall
- You have to learn to control the clutch, if you always pull your foot of the clutch fast, you'll gag and stutter
- Torque and acceleration comes from desperation, turned into drive
- Stoke the engine, warm it up, rev it, and play with how it feels regularly
- Grip the wheel in readiness, then loosen up and relax, then grip again, then loosen up

Eventually it should turn into a small burning fire

You lost me there Rogue

 

[DennisD]

But still I feel like I'm not doing enough. I have this constant anxiety that I'm somehow falling behind, not doing enough and wasting time.

I feel like this VERY often.
It goes away when I sit down with a pen and piece of paper, and write down a definable list of actions I plan to take for the following 3 days.

When I create a hard goal and then work it like a math problem (solving for X), I'm suddenly hyper-aware of the exact steps to take to get me where I'm going. The anxiety turns into excitement.

 

[pz4ever]

I'm 20 years young. Highly driven, ambitious and motivated.

I'm currently writing a blog on fitness and motivation, I'm reading great books every day, reading this forum, watching educational youtube talks & interviews.

But still I feel like I'm not doing enough. I have this constant anxiety that I'm somehow falling behind, not doing enough and wasting time.

I feel like I should be doing more. But I don't know what. I want to make sure I'm doing everything possible so that I succeed.

I want to start a business already. I want to start Failing forward. But I don't know which direction to head, which business to start.

Any advice on how to get rid of this? It's really making me feel like shit and It's hard to be happy with this anxiety.

Thanks in advance.

Thanks for sharing, I recognise myself A LOT in what you write.
I am a blogger too, fashion & lifestyle. The blog is doing OK but the traffic has risen that much the past year, it affects the motivation. The positive is that my readers always give me positive feedback so I know I am doing something right at least, even if the traffic part gives me anxiety.
With the rest I am like you, I'm being ambitious, read a lot, attend seminars often etc - but I still feel like I am not doing enough. That I am being lazy somehow. Falling behind and not going 100% with my full potential. Yet I don't know what to do about it.
And then the anxiety moments...
I just want to start fast-laning, but I feel like I just keep getting overwhelmed with all the ideas in my mind so I honestly don't know where to start. Even more anxiety.

Not sure if my post make any sense but just wanted to share that I feel with you and I am in the same boat!

The ironic thing that it is all in our minds and the only medicine is to start doing and stop thinking so much.
But the mind takes over....

 

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[Peakdesire]

Thanks for sharing, I recognise myself A LOT in what you write.
I am a blogger too, fashion & lifestyle. The blog is doing OK but the traffic has risen that much the past year, it affects the motivation. The positive is that my readers always give me positive feedback so I know I am doing something right at least, even if the traffic part gives me anxiety.
With the rest I am like you, I'm being ambitious, read a lot, attend seminars often etc - but I still feel like I am not doing enough. That I am being lazy somehow. Falling behind and not going 100% with my full potential. Yet I don't know what to do about it.
And then the anxiety moments...
I just want to start fast-laning, but I feel like I just keep getting overwhelmed with all the ideas in my mind so I honestly don't know where to start. Even more anxiety.

Not sure if my post make any sense but just wanted to share that I feel with you and I am in the same boat!

The ironic thing that it is all in our minds and the only medicine is to start doing and stop thinking so much.
But the mind takes over....

Yeah we are in the same exact boat.

And i can relate to that what you said about having a lot of ideas..when i constantly read success stories and listen to business podcasts and read books and look at forums i get so much information and i see all the possibilities and what other people are doing to make money and i get overwhelmed and i feel stuck and dont know what to do.

I really want to start something right now and not wait any longer. But the thing is i dont know what.

And i get this feeling that im wasting my days..

Maybe im being too impatient and rushing things..

 

[wzrd]

You're not anxious, you're simply ambicious, too much for your own good if you're already considering anxiety (An anxiety disorder is a serious mental illness) as a diagnosis.

You have the world at your feet yet you don't know what do with it or You feel like whatever you're currently doing is taking too long.

While most 20 year olds have an immemorial feeling attached to their personalities due to their young age & naivety associated with it, it's very natural for someone as ambicious as you, at your age, to feel like he's losing time, because, every single unit of time is precious.
But living life with a fleeting sense of time is far from optimal - you'll feel stressed, anxious and will eventually burn out much faster if you choose to walk such a path.

My advice would be: Plan. Focus on each individual task at a time, don't try to swallow everything whole and switch your mindset from "event" to "process". What you're doing is part of the process, what you're seeking however is an event, something that will trigger a change in your life and that's why you have the feeling of "starting something right now" because you feel the need for change and change usually comes around as a fruit of process & process naturally takes time.

Feeling like you're falling behind shouldn't be viewed as demotivating unless you choose to do nothing about it.

 

[Peakdesire]

You're not anxious, you're simply ambicious, too much for your own good if you're already considering anxiety (An anxiety disorder is a serious mental illness) as a diagnosis.

You have the world at your feet yet you don't know what do with it or You feel like whatever you're currently doing is taking too long.

While most 20 year olds have an immemorial feeling attached to their personalities due to their young age & naivety associated with it, it's very natural for someone as ambicious as you, at your age, to feel like he's losing time, because, every single unit of time is precious.
But living life with a fleeting sense of time is far from optimal - you'll feel stressed, anxious and will eventually burn out much faster if you choose to walk such a path.

My advice would be: Plan. Focus on each individual task at a time, don't try to swallow everything whole and switch your mindset from "event" to "process". What you're doing is part of the process, what you're seeking however is an event, something that will trigger a change in your life and that's why you have the feeling of "starting something right now" because you feel the need for change and change usually comes around as a fruit of process & process naturally takes time.

Feeling like you're falling behind shouldn't be viewed as demotivating unless you choose to do nothing about it.

Thanks for the reply, i appreciate it.

So what you are basically saying is that what im doing now (reading, doing my blog, learning) is the process? And as a fruit of this process which takes time comes naturally the change, which is me starting a business at some point, so i should take it easy?

And your last paragraph about falling behind; "unless you choose to do nothing about it" The thing is i dont know what more could i do about the feeling.. Im already learning, reading etc but this feeling still comes that somehow im not doing enough and that i should already be in business of some sort.

 

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[wzrd]

Thanks for the reply, i appreciate it.

So what you are basically saying is that what im doing now (reading, doing my blog, learning) is the process? And as a fruit of this process which takes time comes naturally the change, which is me starting a business at some point, so i should take it easy?

Yes, everything you're currently doing is part of your process. No, you shouldn't take it "easy", nor should you take it too "hard". Always strive to be exceptional but remind yourself that you're only human and there's only so much you can do before burning yourself out, or worse, falling in a self induced depression, that is, if you do take things "too hard".
You should however be mindful that you have time and that everything you're currently doing and striving for has a purpose, it can be financial freedom, happiness, etc, you must have a well defined goal to push towards to.

Discard the "Live your life like it's your last day on earth" sentences and focus on "Do what you can now, because it will be worth in the future.".

And your last paragraph about falling behind; "unless you choose to do nothing about it" The thing is i dont know what more could i do about the feeling.. Im already learning, reading etc but this feeling still comes that somehow im not doing enough and that i should already be in business of some sort.

"Unless you choose to do nothing about it" can be translated to "unless you choose to become content with your current place".
And it's clearly not your case, since you are indeed striving for something greater than your current situation.
That feeling is nothing but ambition working it's magic, there's always more to learn, more to see, more to consume - your brain acknowledges that fact. Aslong as you have that ambition pointing you in the right way, you'll automatically force yourself to do everything you "can" do.

 

[Peakdesire]

Yes, everything you're currently doing is part of your process. No, you shouldn't take it "easy", nor should you take it too "hard". Always strive to be exceptional but remind yourself that you're only human and there's only so much you can do before burning yourself out, or worse, falling in a self induced depression, that is, if you do take things "too hard".
You should however be mindful that you have time and that everything you're currently doing and striving for has a purpose, it can be financial freedom, happiness, etc, you must have a well defined goal to push towards to.

Discard the "Live your life like it's your last day on earth" sentences and focus on "Do what you can now, because it will be worth in the future.".




"Unless you choose to do nothing about it" can be translated to "unless you choose to become content with your current place".
And it's clearly not your case, since you are indeed striving for something greater than your current situation.
That feeling is nothing but ambition working it's magic, there's always more to learn, more to see, more to consume - your brain acknowledges that fact. Aslong as you have that ambition pointing you in the right way, you'll automatically force yourself to do everything you "can" do.

Thanks a lot. You seem like a very intelligent person.

 

[wzrd]

Thanks a lot. You seem like a very intelligent person.

My thanks, I do try my best.

 

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[RoadTrip]

And i can relate to that what you said about having a lot of ideas..when i constantly read success stories and listen to business podcasts and read books and look at forums i get so much information and i see all the possibilities and what other people are doing to make money and i get overwhelmed and i feel stuck and dont know what to do.

I really want to start something right now and not wait any longer. But the thing is i dont know what.

And i get this feeling that im wasting my days..

I can resonate with this. I'm in the idea phase (again), also getting overwhelmed by all the possibilities: importing, ebooks, SaaS, selling B2B to old industries, apps, etc. It seems that the more I read, the more anxious I become. I suppose we just have to choose the business type that suits us most.

I have picked up some ventures previously in which I failed, but when I was working on those the anxiety was certainly less than at the moment.

So, I've given myself a few weeks to gather new ideas for my next venture. What I'm doing is researching industries (Reddit, forum sites, problems in my life, brainstorming) and putting all my ideas on a list in Evernote.

Next, I'll be going through my list and identify a top 5. After that, I'll decide what idea/business type I can be most passionate about.

I do agree with the most that it's best to find new angles for existing products since market demand has already been proven. Don't get overwhelmed by competition, competition is good. You need to find a way to diversify yourself from the competition.

I also guess @wzrd is right about the idea phase being part of the process, as long as you give yourself a deadline and then just pick one idea and start executing.

Good luck. Hopefully we'll see a progress thread from you (and me) soon.

 

[Rinzler]

Late to the party, but I just wanted to chime in and say, I'm on the exact same boat. I will come up with an idea, start writing everything down and get really excited about it, and then something else comes along and I think "Wow! That's even better, and it fills a commandment!". This cycle has gone on for the last month, and it's finally getting to the point where I have told myself to STOP thinking of ideas and START developing skills that will help me on my journey.

I've come up with 4 "Big ideas" in the last month, but I admit I have done nothing in terms of pursuing them. You're in the right place though! This forum has helped me a TON and I aspire to be able to give back to it. Sooner rather than later. If there is any way I could help you, please feel free to send me a PM! Even if it's forming an accountability group, sharing links to other great threads, tossing ideas back and forth, I'd be more than happy to help!

 

[OVOvince]

Usually mindfulness, meditation, visualization, brain training.

x10000

dont mean to cut out the rest of the stuff like playing sports, but the above is what i recommend the most.

playing sports helps me too actually, as well as eating healthy. this is important because i noticed after playing a great series of pick up basketball games, i get a dopamine surge that gives me a new perspective on things that I would be too stubborn to listen and consider before.

if it wasnt for me doing all of the above, i wouldve been in a worse place with my parents and even worse regarding my road to fast lane

 

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[Btmann]

wow, great thread..

Been feeling this way exactly for a while now. It got so bad that I totally burned myself out last month. I went from being super motivated and looking forward to working on my site every day to totally getting overwhelmed and quitting.

I'm starting to get back into the groove, but I've been looking at the reasons that it happened so it doesn't happen again. So far I found that:

A. I stopped following a plan of daily and weekly goals. At first I set up mini goals that I was able to get done on a daily basis but after a while it seems that I started "winging it", which at first didn't seem like a big deal, but after a while its obvious that it led to a HUGE decline in productivity.

B. I started comparing my month old site to competitors well-established sites. By comparing myself to others who were much further along than me I felt inadequate and stressed out at "how am I supposed to compete with that?". This coupled with my lack of focus from not having daily goals made me feel like I was totally lost at sea.

Every day anxiety got worse and worse, I felt like I couldn't get a grip on my thoughts. I felt crappy because I know this is my dream to be financially free but I wasn't doing anything about it, so I crashed and burned and didn't even think about the business for a couple weeks.

Now I'm back and reevaluating my plan and trying to avoid being overly hard on myself.

 

[Rinzler]

wow, great thread..

Been feeling this way exactly for a while now. It got so bad that I totally burned myself out last month. I went from being super motivated and looking forward to working on my site every day to totally getting overwhelmed and quitting.

I'm starting to get back into the groove, but I've been looking at the reasons that it happened so it doesn't happen again. So far I found that:

A. I stopped following a plan of daily and weekly goals. At first I set up mini goals that I was able to get done on a daily basis but after a while it seems that I started "winging it", which at first didn't seem like a big deal, but after a while its obvious that it led to a HUGE decline in productivity.

B. I started comparing my month old site to competitors well-established sites. By comparing myself to others who were much further along than me I felt inadequate and stressed out at "how am I supposed to compete with that?". This coupled with my lack of focus from not having daily goals made me feel like I was totally lost at sea.

Every day anxiety got worse and worse, I felt like I couldn't get a grip on my thoughts. I felt crappy because I know this is my dream to be financially free but I wasn't doing anything about it, so I crashed and burned and didn't even think about the business for a couple weeks.

Now I'm back and reevaluating my plan and trying to avoid being overly hard on myself.

I had the same problem when I used to produce electronic music. I would compete in remix competitions and get really motivated and start making progress on the track. Then I would make the mistake of listening to other submissions and become completely demotivated to the point where I would lose focus and try to make my track sound like the competition, etc.

Years later, one of my favorite electronic music artists in the writes "Don't compare your Chapter 1, to someone else's Chapter 20." and it stuck with me.
Glad to hear you're getting back in the game!