How do we cope with the kind of stressful anxiety brought up by these difficult economic times? One of the most useful tools to learn is to not be attached to the outcome of any situation. You might think that would require not caring about the outcome, or adopting an attitude of resignation, but neither has to be true. It is possible to prefer a certain outcome, while not getting upset if that outcome does not happen.

We all know the feeling we get when we desire something. Try this experiment: Follow this feeling in your body, where do you experience it? Notice the sensations it brings up: butterflies in your stomach, heart speeded up, breathing faster, whatever is there for you. Stay with these feelings in your body; don’t go into the story about it in your head. Notice that the feelings change as you pay attention to them, let them move and evolve as you simply watch. Notice how they change, what is different in the end?

Here is another experiment: ask yourself what could be the “worst case” scenario of possible outcomes in this situation, and how would I react? If you absolutely had to deal with the worst situation, what would you do? Go over your plan to deal with it. Then ask yourself how bad would this be, really, could you handle it if you had to? What might change for you? What would not change for you? Would it be the end of the world?

The next experiment is to imagine that you don’t get to have what you were hoping for. Let yourself feel the disappointment strongly, and follow the feelings again in your body. Where are the sensations physically located? What sensations do you feel, hot, cold, quick energy, slow, dark, light, colors, movement, stagnation? Stay with the feeling in your body without going into the story in your head about not having what you want. Let the feelings move, change, and evolve, while you just watch and experience it. Again, notice how they change and what is different in the end?

These three exercises will help you to accept whatever outcome happens, and to let go of any feelings of disappointment. The last piece in learning acceptance is to realize that we cannot know the full, overall, bigger picture in any situation. There is a point where we come to trust in a larger intelligence in the world, that in the larger view of things, this maybe the right outcome. There is surrender to the wisdom of the world, even if it rains on our picnic that day. There is no point in getting angry at the rain, we know it is there for a reason. Hopefully, we can see other disappointments in our lives as we do the rain, holding the possibility that they are there for a reason.