The 5 year Time Machine

In 5 years time, you'll look back and think
 'What was I  worrying about?'

What were you doing 5 years ago? Where were you? Who were you living with? How did you feel? Compared to now, how were you doing? What were the things that really mattered to you? If you looked back at a diary or journal entry for this time 5 years ago, what kind of things were worrying you? What did you fear?

Now, 5 years on, are they still worrying you? Did any of the things you were worrying about 5 years ago actually happen? If they did happen, what was the outcome? Was it as bad as you feared, much better than you thought it would be or worse? I bet that either you can't remember what was worrying you 5 years ago, or that most of the things that were worrying you didn't happen, or worked out far better than you'd planned.

 Can you remember that far back? I have some memories of this time period, I was going through a big change in my life at that time, and shortly after made some dramatic moves in my personal life, which changed the way the rest of these 5 years panned out. However the things I was worrying about then worked out better than I had planned or simply didn't happen at all. There are a few things that I would have changed, given half the chance but on the whole things worked out pretty well.

Scroll on 5 years. What are you expecting to happen in the next 5 years? What do you fear, what do you dream of happening? What do you think might happen? What worries you? Is there anything that currently keeps you awake at night? Is there anywhere you'd like to visit? Write it down in your journal or diary, or just in a notebook, make sure you make note of the date and time, so that you can look back and see what you were worried about. Chances are when you read your diary or journal back in 5 years time you will be thinking 'What? Who? Did I worry about that?' It will all work out for the best in the end. Have faith. Start visualizing a great future and each day take a few steps towards your fabulous future.

Starting a journal (or adding to it regularly if you already have one) is a great idea. It gives you the opportunity to literally see what you were thinking about on any given day. It is a great way to get things off your chest, making you think straighter and to stop worrying about things, as you've written them down.
Once you've written your worries and fears down you could consider what you would say to the other person should you be asked to give advice on the subject. Often this reveals plenty of wisdom, as we all know deep down what the answer to our problems is, we just need to dig deep enough to find it.