Q&A with Lauren O’Shaughnessy

Made of Millions Cofounder / Editor

What do you find yourself overthinking about the most?

How I interact with other people. I struggle a lot with social anxiety. My most intense ruminations center around how I speak, my body language, my likability, and if I’m acting “normal” in a given scenario. I experience a ton of physical symptoms as well, and find myself obsessing over somatic functions like my breathing.

How do you deal with ‘what if’ and ‘should have’ thoughts if they play on your mind?

When I can, I separate myself from those thoughts and shrug them off. But I’ve by no means mastered that, and often find myself spiralling into an unproductive place.

It helps to remind myself that perfection is unrealistic, and that ruminating on the past will never change it. Once something’s done, it’s done. There is no other option but to move on. I also try to remember that I have value outside of my anxious moments and mistakes, and that I give ten times more weight to the things I’ve messed up, than the things I haven’t. We could all afford to go easier on ourselves.