How to Stop Worrying and Start Living Book Summary - How to Stop Worrying and Start Living Book explained in key points

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How to Stop Worrying and Start Living summary

Name: How to Stop Worrying and Start Living
Rating: 4.6 (614 reviews)
Author: Dale Carnegie

Dale Carnegie

The self-help classic that helps you stop worrying

4.6 (614 ratings)

21 mins

12 key ideas

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What is How to Stop Worrying and Start Living about?

How to Stop Worrying and Start Living (1948) is a self-help classic that outlines clearly why worrying is bad for you and what you can do about it. With tools and techniques to put to action, as well as a wealth of examples and anecdotes to back up its recommendations, How to Stop Worrying and Start Living can help you worry less today.

About the Author

Dale Carnegie is the quintessential self-help author. His 1936 bestseller How to Win Friends and Influence People is still a popular title and has sold 15 million copies. He wrote How to Stop Worrying and Start Living because he felt he was ”one of the unhappiest lads in New York” due to excessive worrying, and wanted to find out how to stop.

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How to Stop Worrying and Start Living
summarized in 12 key ideas

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Key idea 1 of 12

Stressful jobs can be dangerous: excessive worrying is bad for your health.

Everyone worries. Few of us realize, though, how damaging it is to our health: worrying excessively can actually make you physically ill.

As Plato already knew, the mind and the body are intimately linked. In fact, the Mayo brothers, famous physicians, once declared that over half of our hospital beds are occupied by people suffering from frustration, anxiety, worry and despair.

Arthritis, for example, is one of many debilitating conditions which can be brought on by worry. In fact, the two leading causes of arthritis are worry-related: marital shipwrecks and financial woes. There are also medical cases that suggest that worrying can increase the likelihood of insanity and diabetes. Clearly, worrying is bad for your health!

Unfortunately for us, there are causes of worry everywhere, and they’re especially common in the work we do. High-pressure jobs tend to generate more worrying and, predictably, more illness than calmer, more tranquil jobs. The high stress levels we associate with high-pressure jobs can lead to heart disease. One study showed that more than a third of business executives suffer from heart-disease, stomach ulcers and high blood pressure. Another study found that twenty times as many doctors as farm workers die from heart failure.

This means that if you’re in a highly stressful job that causes you worry, you need to find a way to fight worrying or you may soon wind up with an ulcer, or worse.

Confusion causes worry: get the facts about your worries and solve the problem.

How would you feel if someone told you on Sunday evening that, come Monday morning, you would be thrown into a torture chamber? Would you worry? Probably. But there would be a way to deal with those worries.

Confusion is the chief cause of worry, said Herbert E. Hawkes, Dean of Columbia College. According to him, few people bother analyzing the facts of their situation when they are worried.

Once you’ve decided how to address your worries, take action and never look back.

Have you ever made a decision in life only to constantly second-guess it afterwards? This tendency is very common in people; we constantly wonder whether we did the right thing and whether there might still be time to take another path.

Although this tendency is common, it can also be very damaging when you’re trying to find ways to address your worries.

Live for today: keep the worries of yesterday and tomorrow out of your head.

Have you ever spent a night tossing and turning, mulling over something that happened in the past or that might happen in the future? If so, you’re not alone – most people have. But to what end?

Worrying about the past or future is pointless. Writer Stephen Leacock described this absurdity aptly by describing a child who speaks of “when I am a big boy.” Then when the child is a big boy, he says, “When I grow up.” As a grown-up he says, “When I am married.” And as a married man, he thinks, “When I can retire.” But when he has retired and looks back over the distance he has come, he will feel a cold wind, and realize he has missed it all, and it's too late.

Whenever you’re facing trouble, embrace the worst-case scenario and then try to improve from there.

When a man named Earl P. Haney was told he had duodenal ulcers, the outlook was bleak: doctors told him he must rest and watch what he eats, but nevertheless that he would likely die very soon. In response, Haney did something spectacular: he embraced his fate.

This simple idea is the basis for a magical three-step approach to stop worrying.

Don’t sink energy into hopeless situations or grudges: set a limit for yourself after which you stop worrying about them.

Most people have the unfortunate capacity to fret and stress endlessly about any negative experiences they encounter, when, in fact, they’d be better off simply walking away from them. Fretting is senseless – by giving in to it we allow misfortunes to exact a terrible cost on our happiness.

So how can we avoid fretting over misfortunes? One surprising solution lies in a well-known strategy taught by a famous stock trader: the “stop-loss” order.

Be happier by focusing on the positives in life and acting happy.

Most people would say their emotions influence the way they think and act. But in fact, as psychologist William James said, they go hand in hand. This means that though we can’t directly influence how we feel, we can influence it indirectly through how we think and act.

One way to feel happier is to act happier. If you’re feeling sad or low, slap a big grin on your face and whistle a chipper tune. You’ll find it impossible to be blue when acting cheerful.

Don’t expect gratitude; give for the joy of giving.

Think back to the last time you did a favor for someone. Were they grateful? If not, did you feel slightly offended and frustrated? When we perform acts of kindness, we often do so with the expectation of gratitude.

But harboring such expectations will probably leave you disappointed. People tend to be thoughtless and ungrateful – it’s just human nature, and you can’t change that.

Don’t envy or imitate others; be yourself.

Congratulations, you are unique. There is no one else like you, nor will there ever be on this earth.

Your genes are completely unique. Even if someone had the same parents as you, the likelihood of someone identical to you being born is one in 300,000 billion.

People criticize those they envy; think of criticisms against you as disguised compliments.

Have you ever wondered why politicians and celebrities seem to attract such vile public criticism? The reason is quite simple: people take vulgar satisfaction in tearing down those more accomplished than they are. Why?

Belittling those we envy is a basic human tendency. We do it because it makes us feel more important by comparison.

Learn to relax and rest before you get tired.

Have you ever noticed that after a rough, tiring day, you’re prone to be more gloomy than at lunchtime? Most people would assume that all the intellectual labor at the office has worn them down.

But those people would be mistaken – mental work alone cannot make you tired. Scientists have discovered that, even after twelve hours, mental labor alone will not tire out the brain.

Enjoy your work and negate stress by being organized.

There are few greater sources of misery in life than having to work, day in, day out, in a job you despise.

Being successful in your job depends on having a good time while you work. Thomas Edison, who labored 18-hour days transforming industrial America, famously said, “I never did a day’s work in my life. It was all fun.”

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Best quote from How to Stop Worrying and Start Living

Business men who do not know how to fight worry die young. —Dr. Alexis Carrel

—Dale Carnegie

Who should read How to Stop Worrying and Start Living

Anyone who wants to worry less
Anyone who wants to deal better with their worries when they occur
Anyone who feels his or her kindness goes unthanked

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Mindfulness & Happiness Personal Development

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How to Stop Worrying and Start Living summary

What is How to Stop Worrying and Start Living about?

About the Author

How to Stop Worrying and Start Living
summarized in 12 key ideas

Stressful jobs can be dangerous: excessive worrying is bad for your health.

Confusion causes worry: get the facts about your worries and solve the problem.

Once you’ve decided how to address your worries, take action and never look back.

Live for today: keep the worries of yesterday and tomorrow out of your head.

Whenever you’re facing trouble, embrace the worst-case scenario and then try to improve from there.

Don’t sink energy into hopeless situations or grudges: set a limit for yourself after which you stop worrying about them.

Be happier by focusing on the positives in life and acting happy.

Don’t expect gratitude; give for the joy of giving.

Don’t envy or imitate others; be yourself.

People criticize those they envy; think of criticisms against you as disguised compliments.

Learn to relax and rest before you get tired.

Enjoy your work and negate stress by being organized.

Key ideas in How to Stop Worrying and Start Living

Stressful jobs can be dangerous: excessive worrying is bad for your health.

Confusion causes worry: get the facts about your worries and solve the problem.

Once you’ve decided how to address your worries, take action and never look back.

Live for today: keep the worries of yesterday and tomorrow out of your head.

Whenever you’re facing trouble, embrace the worst-case scenario and then try to improve from there.

Don’t sink energy into hopeless situations or grudges: set a limit for yourself after which you stop worrying about them.

Be happier by focusing on the positives in life and acting happy.

Don’t expect gratitude; give for the joy of giving.

Don’t envy or imitate others; be yourself.

People criticize those they envy; think of criticisms against you as disguised compliments.

Learn to relax and rest before you get tired.

Enjoy your work and negate stress by being organized.

Best quote from How to Stop Worrying and Start Living

Who should read How to Stop Worrying and Start Living

Categories with How to Stop Worrying and Start Living

Books like How to Stop Worrying and Start Living

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How to Stop Worrying and Start Living summary

What is How to Stop Worrying and Start Living about?

About the Author

How to Stop Worrying and Start Living summarized in 12 key ideas

Stressful jobs can be dangerous: excessive worrying is bad for your health.

Confusion causes worry: get the facts about your worries and solve the problem.

Once you’ve decided how to address your worries, take action and never look back.

Live for today: keep the worries of yesterday and tomorrow out of your head.

Whenever you’re facing trouble, embrace the worst-case scenario and then try to improve from there.

Don’t sink energy into hopeless situations or grudges: set a limit for yourself after which you stop worrying about them.

Be happier by focusing on the positives in life and acting happy.

Don’t expect gratitude; give for the joy of giving.

Don’t envy or imitate others; be yourself.

People criticize those they envy; think of criticisms against you as disguised compliments.

Learn to relax and rest before you get tired.

Enjoy your work and negate stress by being organized.

Key ideas in How to Stop Worrying and Start Living

Stressful jobs can be dangerous: excessive worrying is bad for your health.

Confusion causes worry: get the facts about your worries and solve the problem.

Once you’ve decided how to address your worries, take action and never look back.

Live for today: keep the worries of yesterday and tomorrow out of your head.

Whenever you’re facing trouble, embrace the worst-case scenario and then try to improve from there.

Don’t sink energy into hopeless situations or grudges: set a limit for yourself after which you stop worrying about them.

Be happier by focusing on the positives in life and acting happy.

Don’t expect gratitude; give for the joy of giving.

Don’t envy or imitate others; be yourself.

People criticize those they envy; think of criticisms against you as disguised compliments.

Learn to relax and rest before you get tired.

Enjoy your work and negate stress by being organized.

Best quote from How to Stop Worrying and Start Living

Who should read How to Stop Worrying and Start Living

Categories with How to Stop Worrying and Start Living

Books like How to Stop Worrying and Start Living

Discover the Blinkist catalogue

Popular titles

Most popular categories

Trending Collections

How to Stop Worrying and Start Living
summarized in 12 key ideas