Worrying consumes your energy but doesn’t solve the problem. Here is a list of worry quotes to ease your anxiety and focus on the good.
What is something that always scares you or is always in your mind? For me, it is how others see me.
When I was a kid, the others in my class made fun of me because I was fat. As a result, my self-esteem took a big hit. And ever since then, when I saw others laughing around me, I assumed that they were laughing at me.
It didn’t get easier when I grew up. I was so terrified of voicing my opinions on meetings in fear of looking stupid. My mistakes embarrassed me. And I wanted to be perfect on everything. Thus I missed a lot of chances I didn’t take. Worries got the best of me – worries about failing, about making myself look bad, and mostly about rejection.
Looking back, I realized most of the things that terrified me at that time didn’t happen. And even when it did, it wasn’t that bad. A close friend called me “unrealistic” when I quit my job and started this blog. Yes, I was upset when things didn’t go so well. But the struggles were never as consuming as my worries.
For you, you may have bigger things to worry about. From natural disasters to disease, from unemployment to breakups, bad things happen all the time. And sometimes, they spiral out of our control.
But the cause of anxiety isn’t always the uncertainty itself but our need to stay in control. The urge to control things we can’t control makes us worry.
So if you are feeling anxious about the future, these worry quotes might make you feel better. I hope they will guide you to a positive mindset and stop overthinking things that haven’t happened yet. Finally, and most importantly, I hope you will find the strength to handle uncertainty and restore your inner peace.
Worry quotes to worry less and calm down
Positive quotes to worry less
Worrying does not take away tomorrow’s trouble. It takes away today’s peace.
– Randy Armstrong.
Be a warrior. Not a worrier.
Take action, take risks and live to the fullest
Life’s too long to wait and too short to worry.
– Todd Snider, Ballad of the Devil’s Backbone Tavern
Positive quotes to shift your worries to strength
Instead of worrying about what you cannot control, shift your energy to what you can create. – Roy T. Bennett
Hakuna matata – No worries. Take it easy.
Just be yourself
You probably wouldn’t worry about what people think of you if you could know how seldom they do.
– Olin Miller
A quote on why worrying is a waste of time
Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, it empties today of its strength. – Corrie Ten Boom
Live in the present
No amount of regret can change the past, and no amount of worrying can change the future.
– Roy T. Bennett
You only have today once. Make it count.
Don’t overdraw your energy balance
Worrying is carrying tomorrow’s load with today’s strength.
– Corrie Ten Boom
Believe in yourself
Sorrow looks back. Worry looks around. Faith looks up.
– Ralph Waldo Emerson
If you find it hard to stop your anxiety, maybe positive thinking will help. Instead of telling yourself not to worry, try to affirm that you have the strength and resilience to cope with what you worry about. Believe in yourself a little bit more, and it may take the pressure off your shoulder.
Let life unfold
Whatever is going to happen will happen, whether we worry or not.
– Ana Monnar
An inspiring quote on worrying
Most of the things you worry about won’t happen.
If you suffer from chronic anxiety, try to write down your worries on a piece of paper or in your journal. Then once in a while, take a look back at all thing things you’ve noted down.
How many of them actually happened? What can you do better to prepare yourself? This mindful practice will gradually train your brain to find solutions instead of worrying.
Don’t let your mind bully your soul
Worry is a misuse of the imagination.
– Dan Zadra
Sometimes it’s in your head
Man is not worried by real problems so much as by his imagined anxieties about real problems.
– Epictetus
Rehearse for the worst-case scenarios. But don’t ruminate. There’s a fine line between thorough preparation and overthinking. When your imagination takes you down the rabbit hole, be strong enough to tell yourself “No.”
Think positively, act proactively
Life is ten percent what you experience and ninety percent how you respond to it.
– Dorothy M. Neddermeyer
How to cut off a self-destructive thought pattern
Things you can do instead of worrying
Take a walk
Drink coffee
Talk to someone
Write your worries down
Make plans ahead
Stop wasting your time
Worrying is like walking around with an umbrella waiting for it to rain.
– Wiz Khalifa
Relatable worry quotes
Instead of doing my homework, I like to stay on my phone worrying about how much homework I have to do.
– Unknown
I worry too much, and then I worry over the fact that I worry too much.
– Unknown
If only thoughts had an off switch.
Anything is better than sitting there worrying
Sometimes the worst place you can be is in your own head.
Worrying is like paying a debt you don’t owe.
– Mark Twain
Worrying is like a rocking chair. It gives you something to do, but it doesn’t get you anywhere.
– Erma Bombeck
Life is too short to be spent at war with yourself.
Give your mind the peace it deserves
If it’s out of your hands, it deserves freedom from your mind too.
– Ivan Nuru
You are not going to worry yourself out of a problem.
– Eckhart Tolle
Worrying means you suffer twice.
Be the goal-getter
If you can’t beat fear, just do it scared.
– Glennon Doyle Melton
Doubts kill more magic than failure ever did
The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one.
– Elbert Hubbard
Difference between worry and concern
There is a great difference between worry and concern. A worried person sees a problem, and a concerned person solves a problem.
– Harold Stephen
While worrying encourages us to be more alert and prepared, too much worrying sabotages our motivation and mental health. Be aware of how much is too much.
A positive strategy to deal with worries
Let our advanced worrying become advanced thinking and planning.
– Winston Churchill
Quotes on what is worrying and why it doesn’t help
Worrying is worshipping the problem.
Worrying is using your imagination to create something you don’t want.
– Abraham Hicks
Stop overthinking and start doing
A day of worry is more exhausting than a week of work.
– John Lubbock
Worrying, perfectionism, and procrastination are three things that kill action. And the longer you wait, the stronger they get.
The way to cut them off is to do one small thing – something that is easy enough to get you started. Maybe write the title of your paper, make a phone call or make a 3-step plan. You are halfway there the moment you start.
An affirmation to handle uncertainty
You got what it takes to deal with what might come. Trust yourself.
Worries are pills. Not the magic ones that solve the problem, but the poison ones that take away your strength.
Be patient with the process
You don’t need to figure everything out today. Just cope as you go.
Challenge your negative thinking
What if I fail?– What if I fly?People will make fun of me if I fail. – I celebrate my courage for trying.I will waste my time if I don’t make it.– Failures are lessons money can’t buy.I can never pull off a new task.– What a great chance to test my potential.
How to worry less and do more
If you are a chronic worrier like me, here are a few tips that may help to worry less and stress less. So give them a try and implement the strategies one at a time.
- Write down your worries.
Sometimes your thoughts can be deceiving. For example, maybe there are ten things you are not so sure about. Out of them, you can handle seven. It’s the remaining three things that create a false impression of a ton to worry about.
To tackle this, write down what exactly is on your mind. Be as specific as you can. It will give you more clues on the scale of the situation. And by writing them down on paper, you remove the burden from your mind.
This simple strategy is called brain-dumping. And it has helped me to find peace in chaos. You can download this template and start dumping your mental baggage on paper.
- Identify what you can control.
As one of the worry quotes said, “If it’s out of your hands, it deserves freedom from your mind too.” So instead of worrying about what might happen, try to figure out what is within and beyond your control.
For example, if you are worried about the coming exams, try to break them down in statements as follow:
- I can control how well I prepare for the test and make sure I have enough sleep the night before.
- I can’t control what exactly will be tested and what grades I will get.
By making a list like this, you can shift your energy to things you have control. Also, it will remind you to stress less about things you don’t have control over.
- Make plans – for the better and the worse.
We don’t control what will happen. But we can be mentally and strategically prepared.
Make plans accordingly for the good and worse case scenarios. You don’t need to have a step-by-step action plan. Instead, you can use the “if…then” template to craft your coping strategy like this:
- If the meeting is going well, then I will celebrate.
- If the meeting is not going well, I will discuss it with my manager and modify my project.
- Do something else.
Make a list of things you enjoy or mindfulness practice to relax your mind. So if next time when you can’t sleep at night worrying, maybe get up and read a page or two. Or meditate for 10 minutes.
Here is a list of relaxing hobbies to give you some inspirations.
- Practice gratitude
Gratitude shifts your focus from what you might lose to what you already have. And it reduces anxiety and brings happiness back to life.
Here is a 30-day gratitude challenge that to start practicing gratitude. Give it a try and see if you feel more calm and experience more joy in life!
Which of these worry quotes speaks to you?
Leave a comment down below or tag @_OurMindfulLife on Instagram to share your thoughts!