This Week’s Focus Point: Anxious or Eager?

One of my pet peeves is the improper use of the words anxious and eager. You hear them used interchangeably all the time, even in the media (who should know better). Let’s make this crystal clear – anxious indicates anxiety; eager indicates excitement.

If your anxious, you have fear, trepidation, and angst. You would say, “I’m anxious about opening that door becasue there may be zombies behind there!” You should never say, “I’m anxious to meet you in person,” because unless they are the second coming of Al Capone, you’re hopefully eager to meet them.

Proper grammar aside, these words also have a place in your mindset. If you’re anxious for the day ahead, you’re setting yourself up for failure. It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy. You play the day scared, fearful of “zombies” that will ruin your day. Being anxious leads to poor self-talk, mistakes made under duress, and a victim mentality where everything is someone else’s fault.

If you’re eager for the day ahead, you embrace opportunity. You’ll be resilient when challenges come up; you’ll be more innovative and creative; you’ll seek and find solutions; and you’ll be way more fun to be around. Being eager is a discipline and a state of mind. While it sounds easy to do, it’s not because life and business can often be hard.

Read that last line again…

It’s not easy, but it can be done through discipline and perseverance. If you commit to being eager – even when it’s not convenient to be – you’ll win more in business and create a remarkable life for yourself. So in the words of that great American philosopher Bobby McFerrin, “Don’t worry, be happy mon…” Or in this case, be eager.

Need help going from anxious to eager for yourself or your employees? Check out my Unleashed® Balance Sheets below. They are free to download and send to me for a no obligation perspective.

Quote of the Week:

“Death is nothing, but to live defeated and inglorious is to die daily.”

~ Napoleon Bonaparte

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