How to Stop Worrying and Start Living

Dale Carnegie describes his misery as a young man. He hated his sales job, lived in a cockroach-infested room in New York, and ate in cheap unsanitary restaurants. Worry and disappointment were making him ill. Carnegie then made a life-changing decision. Quitting his job, he spent his days reading and writing and his evenings teaching adults public speaking skills. The work was rewarding, as he saw how his students increased in confidence and became more successful at work. After several years, he decided to teach how “to win friends and influence people” (3). Failing to find a textbook on the subject, he wrote one himself. The book became a bestseller.

Carnegie next realized that many of his students wanted to overcome the habit of worrying. Again, there were few books available on the subject, so he decided to write one. His research for the book largely involved interviewing people. For five years, he conducted a “laboratory for conquering worry” (5), where students were given rules to follow and reported back on the results. Carnegie’s classes on managing worry were established throughout the United States and Canada.

The author offers readers nine tips on getting the most from his book:

• Commit to a happier future in which they stop worrying and start living.