Anticipation vs. Anxiety
I don’t know why Carly Simon’s song “Anticipation” found its way into my head this week. But it did… and it got me thinking about the word.
The word “anticipation” originates from the Latin anticipationem, meaning “preconception, preconceived notion.” Its meaning has since shifted to “the action of looking forward to”, which I actually kind of like.
Sure, whatever you anticipate doesn’t always come out as foreshadowed, but the concept of anticipation seems to hold less fear in it than the idea of being anxious or feeling anxiety about something.
Anxious comes from the Latin anxius, meaning “solicitous, uneasy, troubled in mind.” There’s no question there are moments that we all feel anxious — some of us more than others and in some situations more than others.
But what if we channeled our energy and attention towards anticipation over anxiousness? What would that look like? What would that feel like?
I’m going to try this, reframing my thoughts around anticipation over anxiousness when I have no concrete idea of what to expect.
Maybe you should give it a try too.
