179the five things that I was worried about—perhaps they
were four projects at work and the fifth was my son’s
trouble he was having with a certain teacher. I would
then decide to spend five minutes on each problem do-
ing something, anything. By deciding this, I knew I was
committing myself to 25 minutes of activity. No more.
So it didn’t feel at all overwhelming.
Then I could make a game of it. On project one, a semi-
nar workbook deadline for a new course, I’d spend five
minutes writing it. Maybe I only got the first two pages
done, but it felt great. It felt like I’d finally started it.
Then on item number two, a meeting I knew I had to
have with a client over a sticky contract issue, I would
call his office and schedule the meeting and put it in my
calendar. That, too, felt good.
My third worry, a stack of correspondence I needed
to answer, I would take five minutes sorting and stack-
ing and putting them into a folder that was separate
from the other clutter on my desk. That felt satisfying,
too. The fourth item was a travel arrangement that had
to be worked out. I’d take no more than five minutes
looking at my calendar and leaving a voice mail for my
travel agent to fax me some alternatives on the trip.
Finally, on the matter of my son, I would pull out a
piece of paper and write a short letter to his teacher ex-
pressing my concern for him, my support of her efforts,
and my desire to arrange a meeting quickly, so all three
of us could sit down together and make some agreements.
All of that took 25 minutes. And the five things that
were worrying me the most were no longer worrying
me. I could then go back anytime later and work them
to completion.
If something is worrying you, always do something
about it. It doesn’t have to be the big thing that will
Replace worry with action