7 small steps that will reduce your anxiety by over 90% in the next 24 hours
I’ve been to hell and back with anxiety.
This is what I’d tell others who want more ease and want to avoid all the mistakes and wasted time I endured to find peace.
Step 1. Understand what anxiety REALLY is.
Most of us struggle with stress and anxiety because we misunderstand it. We have social anxiety and say it’s ‘because other people scare me.’
Or we have stress in the office and say it’s ‘because my boss is an asshole.’
Nope. It’s all self-generated via the power of perception.
There’s nothing to be scared of ‘out there.’
All emotions reflect the state of our thoughts in each moment.
If we have an anxious thought, we will feel it as anxiety. My ‘Untethered Mind’ course shows you more about this.
Understanding that our emotions are always tied to thoughts is the first step to freedom.
Step 2. Stop identifying with ‘your anxiety.’
Next, let’s acknowledge the most common reason millions continue to suffer from anxiety, even if they’re spiritual as F and tried everything under the sun to ‘fix’ their problem.
(This held me back for years).
It’s simply this: they see themselves as an ‘anxious person.
‘Well, congratulations buttface, you’re going to remain anxious.
Today you need to do something seemingly drastic…
You’re going to stop identifying with ‘your anxiety.’ Remove that shit from your bio.
Stop telling everyone you’re anxious.
Acknowledge that you might occasionally FEEL anxiety, but that doesn’t mean you ARE anxious.
Shout ‘FUCK TO THE NO.’
Draw a line in the sand today.
Step 3. Do the dirty orangutan dance.
You just disidentified with your anxiety.
You didn’t think we’d move on without a celebration, did you?
You need to drop what you’re doing right now and perform disgraceful moves in a private place.
Gyrate like a wild degenerate primate with a lust for filth.
No one needs to see you.
This is for you.
Feel free to return here whenever you need a boost, and you feel stress coming on. Get loose physically and have fun.
That’s 82% of the solution right there.
Step 4. Three long breaths.
We can inadvertently fuel the flames of anxiety by breathing too fast or not at all.
Slowing your breath is your portal to relief any time you need it.
It’s a beautiful tool for slowing yourself physically, which will directly calm the mind too.
Take three long and shallow breaths through your nose down into your belly button right now. You will feel yourself calming down quickly and in real-time.
Step 5. Decide to pursue excellence.
Hey Frank, so you’re no longer an ‘anxious person’ huh?
Crazy what a single piece of writing can do.
Good for you.
You’ve just opened up space for other things. You certainly don’t want to fill that time with more Netflix-binging, stuffing your face hole with tootsie rolls.
No, no, no.
You must dedicate your new life to excellence.
Nothing soothes anxiety more than dropping your little bitch attitude and embodying what true success is for YOU.
Write down three enlivening goals for the end of this year.
What’s the relationship or job you really really want?
What’s your ideal day? What kind of person do you need to become to live an incredible life?
Locate your nuts.
Go there. Design it. Become that person today.
Step 6. Do an energy audit.
Check out this cool diagram I drew…
One of the things I do with all my clients is to have them draw up two simple columns:
things that drain my energy, and
things that boost my energy.
Fill it out with everything you can think of. An energised body is going to experience the least anxiety physically.
So bring awareness to where your energy is going.
Number the items in the list according to the level of impact.
Identify your number 1 consistent energy drain, and decide to eradicate it from your life today.
One thing to start. Go.
Step 7. Become the ‘Pied Piper of Joy.’
Anxiety is rife in those who see themselves as victims. You’re different.
Your new life is now dedicated to leadership — specifically leading others towards joy.
There’s a magic to turning your attention away from yourself (self-conscious) and redirecting it towards other people (leadership).
Your new objective is to help other people realise calm and joy.
You can do it as a coach, a parent, a creator, a teacher, or simply by soothing others when you meet them.
Your job is to make others feel good; to awaken them from numbness; to make them smile.
This will bring you calm like little else.
And it is from here that we finally get the chance to experience your brilliance.
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Thanks for reading.
If you’d like to significantly UnF*CK your stress (regardless of your life situation) in the next couple of days, you might like my Untethered Mind course.
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Read this the first time precisely when I needed it.
Came back today for a brotherly boost, and it totally did the trick.
Thanks Alex 🤝
Dirty primate dance incoming…
Thank you for the helpful reminders on approaches to anxiety and life in general. I have struggled with anxiety A LOT. The only way it meaningfully improves, for me and anyone I know who has got through it is, as you note in point number 2, you have to stop identifying with it. How you feel needs to no longer be the most important thing in the room. Sure in the beginning anxiety can come along with you like a fearful little gremlin on your shoulder, but it cant drive the car. I love your point about bringing joy, I have noted interestingly though, if you behave like this around people who are still 'in' their anxiety or depression or whatever negative state, they will gravitate away from you. Which I also consider a bonus. Recovering from anxiety is a bit like alcoholism, it can be addictive, and if you are trying to recover from alcohol addiction you probably dont want to be around people on the p~*s all the time, just like you dont want to be around anxious people. Energy audit is very productive, when you are highly anxious a lot of your energy goes towards reassurance seeking so I think this will be very helpful to gain some insight! thanks for your posts. Gonna head to the toilet and do the dirty orangutang dance....