‘Fear Hacking’ Is the New Positive Thinking
Plan how you’ll react if stuff hits the fan
We live in a society that favors positivity. But the motivations are varied. Most are positive for positivity’s sake. But then there are those who are more strategic, like the Tesla CEO, Elon Musk, who embrace the possibility of best-laid plans because the likelihood of something going awry can be very high (especially with what he’s doing). Musk refers to this as “fatalism,” but I like to think of it as a necessary part of something more constructive: a psychological process of fear hacking.
Fear hacking basically involves imagining the worst-case scenario and taking the steps necessary to manage any negative potential outcome. Don’t just focus on the shit not hitting the fan. If the shit does hit the fan, you’ll be able to cope. Focus on that instead.
Catastrophize, then plan
You might also call it controlled catastrophic thinking. The key here is the word “controlled.” You don’t want to find yourself spiraling down a rabbit hole of generalized worst-case scenarios, which will just increase your fear, so you do it in a measured way, focusing on specifics.
Start by asking yourself, “What could go wrong here?” then ask yourself what you’d do if your fears came true. In most cases…
