FIVE RULES FOR FREEING YOUR CREATIVE MACHINERY

1. "Do your worrying before you place your bet, not after the wheel starts turning."
I am indebted to a business executive, whose weakness was roulette, for the above expression which "worked like magic" in helping him overcome worry, and at the same time function more creatively and successfully. I happened to quote to him the advice of William James, mentioned earlier, to the effect that emotions of anxiety have their place in planning and deciding upon a course of action, but that, "When once a decision is reached and execution is the order of the day, dismiss absolutely all responsibility and care about the outcome. Unclamp, in a word, your intellectual and practical machinery, and let it run free."
Several weeks later he burst into my office as enthusias­tic over his "discovery" as a schoolboy who has discovered his first love. "It hit me all of a sudden," he said, "during a visit to Las Vegas. I've been trying it and it works."
"What hit you and what works?" I asked.
"That advice of William James. It didn't make too much of an impression when you told me, but while I was playing roulette it came back to me. I noticed any number of people who appeared not to worry at all before plac­ing their bets. Apparently the odds meant nothing to them. But once the wheel started turning, they froze up, and began to worry whether their number would come up or not How silly, I thought. If they want to worry, or be concerned, or figure odds, the time to do that is before the decision is made to place a bet. There is something you can do about it then, by thinking about it You can figure out the best odds possible, or decide not to take the risk at all. But after the bets are placed and the wheel starts turning—you might as well relax and enjoy it— thinking about it is not going to do one bit of good, and is wasted energy.
"Then I got to thinking that I myself had been doing exactly the same thing in my business and in my personal life. I often made decisions or embarked upon courses of action, without adequate preparation, without considering all the risks involved, and the best possible alternative. But after I had set the wheels in motion, so to speak, I continually worried over how it would come out, whether I had done the right thing. I made a decision right then that in the future I would do all my worrying, all my fore-brain thinking, before a decision was made, and that after making a decision, and setting the wheels in motion, I would 'dismiss absolutely all care or responsibility about the outcome.' Believe it or not, it works. I not only feel better, sleep better, and work better, but my business is running much smoother.
"I also discovered that the same principle works in a hundred different little personal ways. For example, I used to worry and fume about having to go to the dentist, and other unpleasant tasks. Then I said to myself, 'This is silly. You know the unpleasantness involved before you make the decision to go. If the unpleasantness is all that important to cause so much concern, and not worth the worry involved, you can simply decide not to go. But, if the decision is that the trip is worth a little unpleasant­ness, and a definite decision is made to go—then forget about it. Consider the risk before the wheel starts turning.' I used to worry the night before I had to make a speech at a board meeting. Then I said to myself, 'I'm either go­ing to make the speech or I'm not. If the decision is to make it, then there's no need in considering not making it —or trying to mentally run away from it.' I have dis­covered that much nervousness and anxiety is caused by mentally trying to escape or run away from something that you have decided to go through with physically. If the decision is made to go through with it—not to run away physically—why mentally keep considering or hop­ing for escape. I used to detest social gatherings and go along only to please my wife, or for business reasons. I went, but mentally I resisted it, and was usually pretty grumpy and uncommunicative. Then I decided that if the decision was to go along physically, I might as well go along mentally—and dismiss all thought of resistance. Last night I not only went to what I would formerly have called a stupid social gathering, but I was surprised to find myself thoroughly enjoying it"