Picture this: Your little one, brow knitted in concentration, hoists a tiny leg onto a chair, hoping to pull themself up to sit. Until this very moment, grown-up hands have always been ready and waiting to assist with this arduous task. Soon the other foot leaves the ground and the outcome hangs in the balance. What do you do? Alleviate the struggle with a boost, or…wait?
Suppose you’re like Laura Birek, a self-described “expert catastrophizer” who is descended from a long line of worriers. In that case, you might ready yourself for disaster, scanning the scene for risks of bodily harm while wiping away beads of sweat. The chair could topple; the limbs could slip. But in reality the chair stands
