Written by Tom Heuer
“Worry” has settled into our vocabulary and our lives. COVID has wrestled away our ease into every day life. We worry about actions/activities taken for granted only weeks before. Life is different, difficult and challenging. It may be nerve-wracking because the path ahead is unsure. This uncertainty has allowed worry to take control of our lives.
Leaders know that worry is senseless. Worry offers no answers. It saps your physical and mental energy. It is selfish. Conversely, “concern” is focused on problem-solving. Genuine concern asks, “How can I help you?” Concern is believed as a positive quality, unlike worry, because the individual does not keep on feeling anxious about a situation but tries to find solutions to fixing it.
Leaders trust. They channel their energy to make the necessary choices order to solve the problem. Worry leads to fear. Concern engenders hope. We have not been placed here to be anxious but to make a difference.
Keep in mind that hope is the very antithesis of anxiety. Both of them look to the future, but while hope delights in the future; anxiety dreads it. Hope is filled with certainty; anxiety is filled with uncertainty.
Mark Twain once said, “I’ve had a lot of worries in my life, most of which never happened.” I am thankful that this is true. Trust in yourself and the people around you. Live life!
Tom Heuer is a the Richard Forsythe Chair In Entrepreneurship at Miami University. Look for his new book (along with co-author Steve Coats), called Ignite the Extraordinary.
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