We lovely humans are rather skilled in the art of worrying. Sometimes our worries are totally rational, and other times it’s like we’ve plucked them from thin air. We’ve got some handy tips for curbing those niggly thoughts to maintain your mental fitness.

There are several persistent worries in life that sometimes we don’t have much control over, such as taxes, financial insecurity and at some point (bleakly) death. Once you have these cemented in your mind, it might make it easier to prioritise and process the worries going on in your life. We’ve debunked some of these colossal worries, helping you break down the worrisome factors into digestible and manageable steps.

Bills…

However frequently your bills occur, monthly, quarterly, or annually it’s fair to say they are fairly relentless. Ignoring their existence isn’t really an option otherwise you’ll land yourself in a more sticky financial bind. One thing is certain, we all have bills, therefore it’s a problem we all face so let’s use the Wikipedia mentally here, 10,000 heads are better than one.

Here’re some tips around taking control when it comes to bills and payments:

• Create a realistic budget for yourself and actually stick to it. It’s all very well and good putting together a budget of your outgoings and commitments, but using it month to month is an entirely different thing. Put your budget above and beyond everything, this is how you are going to maintain your lifestyle - it’s important. Overall, budgeting in this strict and responsible way will help you gain a bird’s-eye view of your bills and how they affect you.

• Make a sacrifice, remove unimportant bills. By the sheer fact of you needing to budget means that you are finding it difficult to manage your finances. So, a good place to start would be to cut some of your ‘nice to have but non-essential’ bills. Stopping your cable TV might be hard, but that is always a drain on finances. There are lots of entertainment options available which might halve your monthly bill. The likes of Netflix or Amazon Prime are likely cheaper than cable TV deals.

• Price compare EVERYTHING. There are so many helpful services that can compare insurance deals, car prices, electricity suppliers etc. Don’t let yourself be ripped off, you might even be able to save some of your hard earned money.

Failure…

Fear of failure, how many times have you let this worry you? I can imagine a fair few times. Humans have the great gift of being able to experience new things everyday, no matter how big or small these might be. It’s funny, because when you are younger and don’t understand the action of judgement trying new things is entirely natural.

Once upon a time we were all totally immobile, then the next thing we know we are crawling into cupboards and causing chaos for our ever worried parents, who now must control a curious baby who is very much ‘on the move’. Failure doesn’t even pop into our young infant minds because exploration is innate, as we grow older and understand that others are watching what we do and say, the fear of failure opens up and manifests, making life harder than it ever was before. Next time you tell yourself you can’t, why not channel the baby brain in you… what would they do? As we become adults, some of us lose that precious quality we once possessed.

Never stop being curious, never stop trying new things, and never stop allowing failure to make you stronger!

The Past…

If you think about it, most of humanity’s wars happened because of conflicting beliefs over what happened in the past. Which arguably isn’t want you want to create within your own life.

The past is undoubtably important to learn and reflect from, especially if you’ve been down a few rocky roads. But, you shouldn’t let it get in your way and become an overwhelming burden that prevents you from moving forward. Standing still is never the desirable option, sometimes it’s easy but it won’t get you anywhere in the long run.

Don’t be ashamed of past obstacles and decisions you’ve made, that’s what has made you be you. It’s hard to not let what has happened previously distract you and impose on your future personal goals.

These tests are there to try us, learn from these, and fight that little bit harder next time. It’s a simple, but sometimes hard to play out in a real life concept… The only way you can continue being harmed by something that already happened is if you let it. Stop letting these things get to you, and start living your best life.

Being yourself…

In reality not everyone is going to like you, to all the people pleasers out there this is a very hard pill to swallow. But, it is a fact of life.

As mentioned earlier, judgement in our 2019 societal bubble if rife. What with ITV2’s Love Island bringing in staggering ratings night in, night out which is predominantly a show where judging others is the name of the game, a glorified popularity contest. Sadly, this is popular among numerous generations, but I question why? Does it take away from your own life, can you in that 1 hour a night get absorbed in something so far away from your own existence that you can literally escape? Is this level of judgement cathartic?

Learning that not everyone is going to like you can ultimately be liberating. The self imposed ‘must be liked’ shackles are released and you are free to be yourself. Think about it, how many times a day do you let others influence your thoughts and feelings? Try to not let this happen and think through what you genuinely think rather than a sometimes biased view.