There are emotional challenges that all of us have, even children. One of the challenges pertains to worrying about the future.
Worry is fear of the unknown. Even more important to realize is that worry is actually negative self-talk. Additionally, if you reflect on the things that you have worried about, you will conclude that they rarely occurred in reality.
As with worry, some people live with past failures, with past hurts, and thereby bring past negative emotions into the present.
One of the keys to happiness is to practice thinking in the present rather than dwelling on the worry of the future or negativity of the past. Controlling your thoughts to stay in the present by redirecting negative thoughts into positive ones is a habit that anyone—even youth—can develop.
I think of a short sentence and a reflective question that help me move from future worry or past negativity to “present thinking.”
The sentence:
“Future worry and negative memory are my creations.”
The reflective question:
“What else can I think about?”
