Marcus provides a practical method for overcoming anticipatory anxiety - the tendency to catastrophize about future difficulties. Instead of mentally rehearsing all possible problems (which creates present suffering for imaginary futures), he advocates dealing with challenges as they actually arise. When we face real difficulties in the present moment, we often discover we're stronger and more resourceful than our worried imagination suggested. This approach prevents us from living through hardships multiple times - once in fearful anticipation and again in reality - and helps us trust our capacity to handle whatever actually comes.