<p>Experience has proved to me, time after time, the enormous value of arriving at a decision. It is the failure to arrive at a fixed purpose, the inability to stop going around and round in maddening circles, that drives men to nervous breakdowns and living hells. I find that fifty per cent of my worries vanishes once I arrive at a clear, definite decision; and another forty per cent usually vanishes once I start to carry out that decision.</p> <p>So, I banish about 90 per cent of my worries by taking these four steps:</p> <ol> <li> <p>Writing down precisely what I am worried about.</p> </li> <li> <p>Writing down what I can do about it.</p> </li> <li> <p>Deciding what to do.</p> </li> <li> <p>Starting immediately to carry out that decision.&rdquo;</p> </li> </ol>