“We suffer more in imagination than in reality.” — Seneca

I do an exercise called “fear-setting” at least once a quarter, often once a month. It is the most powerful exercise I do.

Fear-setting has produced my biggest business and personal successes, as well as repeatedly helped me to avoid catastrophic mistakes.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

My TED talk, which is what you are listening to, gives you an overview, and the text at tim.blog/ted provides more detail, step-by-step instructions, and real-world examples.

You can watch the TED talk here: https://www.ted.com/talks/tim_ferriss_why_you_should_define_your_fears_instead_of_your_goals

The three exercise slides from the TED presentation: https://tim.blog/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/ted_ferriss_fear_setting_sample_slides.pdf

This talk was also shared on the podcast TED Talks Daily, where TED shares new ideas every weekday. You might also enjoy my conversation with Chris Anderson on The TED Interview podcast, in which we discuss philosophy, psychedelics, and much more.

SUGGESTED READING:

Tao of Seneca: Letters from a Stoic Master — Free PDFs of three volumes of Stoic writing and modern profiles.

Some Practical Thoughts on Suicide

The Tao of Seneca — On Groundless Fears

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#422: Fear-Setting: The Most Valuable Exercise I Do Every Month

The Tim Ferriss Show

#422: Fear-Setting: The Most Valuable Exercise I Do Every Month