How to Stop Worrying and Start Living Summary: Dale Carnegie

Dale Carnegie author of How to Stop Worrying and Start Living talks about how one can conquer overthinking, anxiety, stress, and even depression in simple steps. The book is filled with lots of research and stories which will make your mind engaged at the same time, you will learn life lessons from this Dale Carnegie.

The book was originally published in 1947 and it has been revised by the author quite of times.

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Contents

How to Stop Worrying and Start Living Summary

My first book was How to win friends and influence people and after that, I come to know about this book and believe it was life-changing for me and still, it helps a lot when I’m stuck somewhere in my work or even in life.

So today let me share with you some of my notes from the book along with some of the lessons which will change your life.

A Magic Formula For Solving Worry Situations
Steps To Eliminate the Worry
Don’t Take Critisition To Personally
Life is too Short to Get Upset About Small things
Your Thoughts can Make or Destroy Your Life
Be Honest to Yourself

A Magic Formula For Solving Worry Situations

Firstly, let’s talk about three formulas to conquer overthinking, anxiety, stress, and even depression.

Step 1: Analyzed the situation fearlessly and honestly and figured out what was the worst that could possibly happen as a result of this failure. No one was going to jail me or shoot me. That was certain.

Step 2: Imagine the worst that could ever happen to humans, now put yourself there and see, whether the problem you have is bigger than that or not.

Step 3: Now, if you can understand that, situation then you will come out but if you keep blaming yourself for everything then things will get bigger and bigger the same way, you Imagined that Human. For any kind of problem, there is only one solution which is admitting what you have done and accepting and finding the solution for it.

If I talk about myself,

When I feel, I have a problem or I’m thinking too much about my work then I just go out for a run, take bath, or visit the garden to clear up my head.

This helps a lot, you will have YOU time and your mind will get reflex by taking a small break.

First Thing You Should Know About Worry

If you want to keep worry out of your life, do what Sir William Osier did: Why not ask yourself these questions, and write down the answers?

1. Do I tend to put off living in the present in order to worry about the future?

2. Do I sometimes embitter the present by regretting things that happened in the past that are over and done with?

3. Do I get up in the morning determined to “Seize the day”- to get the utmost out of these twenty-four hours?

4. Can I get more out of life by “living in day-tight compartments”?

5. When shall I start to do this? Next week? .. Tomorrow? … Today?

Now, answer these questions with 100% honesty because no one is hearing, you’re the only one who will hear all the answers, so don’t lie about anything.

Poem by Kalidasa

I found this beautiful poem in this book which I will add below while just don’t read it, try to understand it.

Look to this day!
For it is life, the very life of life
In its brief course Lie all the verities and realities of your existence:
The bliss of growth
The glory of action
The splendor of achievement.
For yesterday is but a dream 
And tomorrow is only a vision,
But today well lived makes yesterday a dream of happiness 
And every tomorrow a vision of hope. 
Look well, therefore, to this day!
Such is the salutation to the dawn.
-by Kalidasa

Rules to Follow

RULE 1: If you want to avoid worry, do what Sir William Osier did: Live in “day-tight compartments”. Don’t stew about the future. Just live each day until bedtime.

RULE 2: The next time Trouble-with a capital T- comes gunning for you and backs you up in a corner, try the magic formula of Willis H. Carrier:

a. Ask yourself, “What is the worst that can possibly happen if I can’t solve my problem?”

b. Prepare yourself mentally to accept the worst-if necessary.

c. Then calmly try to improve upon the worst-which you have already mentally agreed to accept.

RULE 3: Remind yourself of the exorbitant price you can pay for worry in terms of your health. “Businessmen who do not know how to fight worry die young.”

Will the magic formula of Willis H. Carrier will solve all worry problems? No, of course not. Then what is the answer? The answer is that we must equip ourselves to deal with different kinds of worries by learning the three basic steps of problem analysis. The three steps are.

Get the facts.
Analyze the facts.
Arrive at a decision and then act on that decision.

Conclusion

I have learned a lot from this book and I will go on and on but again, I won’t because I really want you to read How to Stop Worrying and Start Living, the book will help you a lot will all kinds of problems.

Do read it…

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