This was the work of Dr Herbert E. Hawkes, Dean of Columbia College, Columbia University in New York from 1917 to 1943. He also explained that worry stems from confusion about any issue. Helping over 200,000 students during his 25 years in office solve their worry problems, he knew what he was talking about from real life experiences.

So, what is worry?

Well, without regurgitating the dictionary version, quite simply, worry is a case of ones mind going round and round in circles with a particular issue or issues and yes, you guessed it, getting nowhere. In fact one could end up with either a headache or in some other cases, I have seen people worry themselves into quite depressive states.

Dr Herbert also believed from his practical experiences of working with people from various background that Worry is also heightened when people try to decide on issues or go over issues without having the bare truthful facts on which to make decisions.

Indeed, from his practical knowledge, he developed some simple Guidelines to "Clean Worry" and allow the enjoyment of Life as it should be.

Now, you may be asking here, does this mean no problems at all, and life becomes one smooth roller coaster?

Surely not...

However, what it does mean is that you can discover and master how to take absolute control over all situations and become the master of yourself and your environment, rather than let them control you.

In a quotation he states:

"If a man was to devote his time to securing facts in an impartial, objective way, his worries will usually evaporate in the light of knowledge"

Now, I've done this for many years and used the same principle to work with people from all walks of life, so I know that this works brilliantly if you allow it and follow the simple steps. The particulars of worry situations are different, but the method outlined below is just one of the simple but easy ways of transforming your life from that of worry to that of VICTORY.

Ok, how should we look at worry or problems that need sorting before they turn into ongoing branches with roots to nowhere?

Quite frankly, it will help you to start looking at these as challenges that can be sorted in one way or another. As long as you live, you'll always have to deal with challenges, it will benefit your personal growth to embrace them with an open heart and understand how to deal with them in a calm and logical way.

So, in embracing the challenges of life, in an objective way, here's an antidote for worry that Dr Herbert E Hawkes used to help over 200,000 people solve their worry problems during his 25 years as the Dean of Columbia College, Columbia University in New York, until his death in 1943.

The Key

a) Understand fully the facts of what you are worrying about, and note that this doesn't mean guessing the facts, find out the facts from the relevant reputable sources. When you get the true facts, you know exactly what you are dealing with. For example, make further enquiries, write, research etc, be honest with yourself and do what you need to do to secure the bare information.

b) Now, armed with the facts, review all information available to you and see what options you have, and how they affect your particular situation. Again maintain communication with the relevant sources until you are clear on your next action, and your available options

c) Having reviewed the options, make an informed decision and act on it, based on the facts you have and the hint here is not to leave it too long, otherwise it may spiral into another worry situation with deeper roots and branches. So, make a decision soon after, even if you decide to do nothing and defer it, you know that it's a decision based on the information you have or know at the time. You can then decide to review again at a set time later. It's important to set a time for further review if you take this route.

Well, here you have it, the 3 point formula, and you'll generally find that once you know the facts, the problem generally solves itself, as the solution may just be starring you right in the face. According to experts, confusion is the biggest cause of worry. So arm yourself with the facts and confusion literally evaporates, allowing you to make informed decisions and create the life you deserve.