After a year of avoiding newspapers and TV (the bad news always seems to outweigh the usefulness of information contained therein), I found myself plugging back in just as headlines appeared warning us of CRISIS! CRASH! HORROR!  Immediately fear appeared and on its heels, panic.  I forgot how to breathe (and this is a problem because then oxygen doesn’t get to the brain, it’s hard to think and then you die).

Fortunately I got ahold of myself just in the nick of time.  I wasn’t scared before I heard the world was coming to an end and being scared now isn’t helping.  If I can’t think, I can’t act.  Or I’ll act stupid and that won’t help.  

Logic tells me that as an individual I did not cause the current economic and political situation and single-handedly I cannot fix it.  I can, however, take positive steps.  Or I can take negative steps.  My choice.  Yours too.  So I offer my thoughts on both sides of the behavioral coin.

These steps do not help and I hereby pledge to avoid them:

Watch the news constantly, especially the reports that detail the worst possible scenarios.

Withdraw all my money and investments and hide the cash under my mattress.

Stop buying what I need and can afford.  Or, go on shopping sprees, AKA retail therapy.

Ask everyone how bad it is for them.  Call my friends and family and speculate about how bad it can possibly get.

Panic and worry about how my business could fail and how I’ll probably end up being a bag lady after all (I knew it!)

Here are the steps I CAN take:

Get my car serviced even though it costs money I might rather hold onto.  If my car dies, that’s a problem.

Not engage in conversations about how horrible everything is.  If my friends need to vent, I can listen and empathize.

Call my broker, my banker, and my insurance agent and check in on my current assets.

Pay my bills on time.

Take good care of my clients, ask for testimonials, keep meeting people and tell them about the services I offer.

Show appreciation for what I have.

Go quietly on the road, getting out of the way if others drive like idiots.  

Vote.

 Hey, don’t forget to breathe.