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Based on my limited time on this earth, one of the lessons that I have profoundly learnt would be the recognition of the correlation between preparation and anxiety. This correlation is negative, such that higher levels of preparation are associated with lower levels of anxiety, while lower levels of preparation with higher levels of anxiety.
To better illustrate my understanding of such a correlation, including how I have come to not just learn this, but profoundly so, I describe 4 instances in my everyday life where this correlation manifests itself:
The first example would probably be close to home to most students: exams. It is no surprise that sufficient preparation for an upcoming exam allows one to feel more at ease and less anxious as the exam date nears; not just because you feel that you are intellectually equipped to tackle the problem you will encounter in the exam, but (sometimes) also because you know that you have done your best in preparation for the test, and you shall experience no regrets as you know that you have given your everything–the rest is beyond your mortal control.
Another example that I experience on a regular basis relates to meal preparation as an aspiring competitive bodybuilder. As much as I hope to be able to let my hair down completely and lounge idly on a Sunday, I do not allow myself to do so until I have prepared my meals for at least the next three days. To a certain degree, I need to be able to be cognizant of what I consume, for that provides me with the relevant data with which I can draw inferences about why my body looks the way it does (from a bodybuilding perspective). Of course, that is not to say that I do not ever allow myself to eat food that is not prepared by myself–especially right now, when I am in my “off-season (i.e. I am not preparing for any contest in particular)”; but for the most part, I eat the meals that I prepare for myself. Failure to prepare my own meals results in my feeling somewhat aimless and almost anxious: I must then eat out, and unfortunately, outside food today is prepared merely for it to taste exceptionally delicious, without any concern for its consumers’ health–which I guess renders my anxiety justified rather than unwarranted.
One last example in the domain of bodybuilding is about my attempts to maintain a relatively lean physique during my off-season. This is done by taking photos of myself posing on a daily basis, which ensures that I have sufficient data (in the form of photos of myself posing) that I can use to compare my physiques across time. Such a form of preparation greatly reduces the likelihood that I may one day unintentionally gain or lose too much weight that I begin to engage in unproductive mental activities like self-blame and feeling anxious. Again, preparation decreases the likelihood of anxiety, by reducing the chances of undesirable events occurring.
The next example I will provide is not explicitly about preparation, but the essence of preparation is reflected through the idea of anticipation. A reasonable ability to anticipate certain events (preparation) allow us to stave off anxiety, while the absence thereof is likely to lead to chaos which will conjure up catastrophic outcomes, and hence, anxiety:
One of the valuable pieces of advice that Dr Jordan Peterson gives about romantic relationships is that conflict delayed is conflict multiplied. In my own romantic relationship, I do my best to be as observant and alert as I can of any conflicts that may appear to be deceivingly trivial but actually has the potential to later evolve into a monster of a conflict that would be too much for me and my partner (and maybe even the relationship!) to handle–again, conflict delayed is conflict multiplied. This entails going against my normally agreeable tendency: as much as I dislike having difficult conversations which are emotionally and psychologically taxing, I engage in them with my partner when I presume necessary, during which both of us are likely to be upset, but we always do our best to empathize with one another and arrive at a reasonable compromise that is most beneficial to not just us, but our relationship. Such observance and alertness are my attempts to anticipate unwanted conflicts that would only manifest in more severe forms in the distant future. In other words, I anticipate potential conflicts (preparation) and resolve them appropriately with the intent of staving off anxiety.
It is almost self-explanatory and overt that there exists such a close-knit relationship between preparation and anxiety; yet, many a time, we (or at least I, myself) fail to realize how this relationship revolves around our everyday life, until we explicitly recognize it. This is also why I chose this topic to write about today: I would like to acknowledge this relationship in formalized terms, so that I may be consciously aware of it and be able to use it to my benefit, rather than be a victim of it.
With that, I end this piece with Chapter 64 of the Dao De Jing by Lao Zi:
64a. Care at the Beginning
What lies still is easy to grasp;
What lies far off is easy to anticipate;
What is brittle is easy to shatter;
What is small is easy to disperse.
Yet a tree broader than a man can embrace is born of a tiny shoot;
A dam greater than a river can overflow starts with a clod of earth;
A journey of a thousand miles begins at the spot under one's feet.
Therefore deal with things before they happen;
Create order before there is confusion.