accepting anxiety

• without anxiety: careless, without plan, no shame, no filters
• anxiety and performance make a bell curve - we need a medium amount of anxiety to be productive/to perform and make good decisions for our future (e.g. studying for exams, making plans, being on time, caring about what our boss/coworkers think) = constructive tension
• anxiety also keeps us safe/prepared, it wants to protect us
• however, too much anxiety can lead to paralysis or being overwhelmed and then we can't get anything done
• we have to learn how to manage anxiety (e.g. meditation, CBT)
• listen to the anxiety and make/adjust plans