James Francis is a nondescript 60-year-old man. He spent much of his adult life depressed, despite being a successful business executive. After being diagnosed with severe anxiety and clinical depression, he has learned to manage his mental illness. He also teaches others how to cope with their own challenges. Considering what advice to tell your younger self is part of his healing journey.
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Sitting on his back porch, relaxing in shorts and a t-shirt, James offers three pieces of advice he would tell his younger self. The first thing to remember is that “the voice in your head is not always right.” He drives the point home by saying, “Don’t believe everything you think.” While explaining this concept, he tells us that about 95 percent of the scenarios we play out in our heads are not going to happen.
His second piece of wisdom is to “forgive yourself before it’s too late.” He discusses how he put himself in bad situations, his childhood trauma, things he’d done to others, as well as letting go of that and forgiving yourself for the past. He says to “give yourself a hug.” At the time, you did the best you could with the tools available to you.
James’s last message is about self-love. He states that you can’t really love other people until you truly love yourself. Without loving yourself, you can’t connect with others. He explains that humans are energy magnets, and you need to be able to turn that around to love others.
James is a professional speaker and author. His book, There’s Coffee in the Fridge: One Man’s Journey Through Anxiety and Depression, is available on Amazon. For more tidbits of wisdom, follow him on TikTok and Instagram.
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