The Sky is Falling! In Defense of Anxiety 2.0: Weighing Your Risks

       Henny Penny, more commonly known in the U.S. as Chicken Little, hysterically assumes the sky is falling, that disaster is imminent, when an acorn falls on his head. How many of us have at least occasionally over-reacted at the first signs of danger, only to find out there was little or nothing to be afraid of? When I speak of anxiety (daily) in my office I frequently use this story as an illustration of our anxiety working overtime, being overly vigilant, like a dog barking at the postal carrier when they are attempting to deliver good news to us. While annoying and at times disruptive to our daily lives, being overanxious has some advantages over the polar opposite. That is, how many of us have failed to recognize the signs of impending danger or risk, with eventual regret? This is the type of example I posed in the first "In Defense of Anxiety", where you are 'at risk' of ignoring your anxiety when it is trying to get your attention, trying to be your guardian.

       As many of you are aware, there are advanced educational degrees and professions devoted to the study of a myriad of risks (e.g., physical, fiscal, systemic) and methodologies for warning others that "the sky is falling". They are referred to as Risk Managers and are employed in a wide range of corporate and institutional settings. A similar profession, which is likely to be even more valued in the near future now, are Safety Engineers ("Look up above!"; "Look out below!"). But how many of these seasoned professionals could have prepared their respective workplaces, institutions, or stakeholders for a pandemic like this? They will now.

       Finally, a repeating emphasis from the White House Coronavirus Task Force has been on raising our awareness of our individual and collective risk profiles, when it comes to acquiring and/or transmitting COVID, along with associated strategies for mitigation of risk, of course. Hopefully, we are still heeding their warnings (as we also continue to listen to our anxiety when it calls to us).