Thank God you’re just lazy and scared. This is your daily message from Chad number 638 and this message is dedicated to Mr. Powerhouse Phil Stutz.

Thank God you’re just lazy and scared. “Now, wait a minute there, Chad. How dare you? You’re being quite assumptive that I’m lazy and scared.” Maybe I am. But I don’t think so. You might say, “What makes you think I deal with procrastination and giving up. What makes you think that I face fear and get panicky? And why are you thanking God that I’m lazy and scared?” Is that what you’re thinking right now?

I’m only saying this because we all are. Everyone deals with laziness and fear. For sure, there is a spectrum and people are more or less lazy and scared. Some have learned the skills to battle procrastination and fear. But these are part of our common humanity.

Phil Stutz talks about the two constants of existence that you can’t get away from. Those constants are uncertainty and work. First, the world is always changing (uncertainty) and that creates anxiety (makes us scared/produces fear). Second, there’s no free lunch. If you want something, you gotta go get it. You are a desiring creature so you must take action.

The good news is you are just lazy and scared. Why is that good news? Because you can choose not to be. They are both switches that you can flip. When you are being lazy, in a moment, you can choose to act. It’s great news. When you are fearful, you can choose not to fold. You can choose to persist. You can choose faith. You can choose hope. Persistence is just another word for faith and hope.

I would submit that where people land on the spectrum of laziness and fear comes down to the stories they tell themselves. People who deal with uncertainty and hard work better than others have learned to tell themselves better stories. When things change, you can either be Chicken Little, that the sky is falling, and this is the end. Or you can tell yourself a better story. When expectations mount, you can procrastinate and stay stuck. Or you can tell yourself a better story. It’s your choice. Thank God it’s just a choice. Laziness is not innate. It’s not genetic. It’s a choice. Fear is not a trait. It’s a choice. Thank God it’s just a choice.

Send me a story you tell yourself to make a better choice to my email fromchadsmith@gmail.com. You can read this transcript and hundreds of others at fromchad.com.