Fear. Just looking at the word can make you uneasy. Much of our lives is dictated by fear of some kind. Sure, there’s healthy fear; like fear of a Grizzly Bear when you’re alone in the woods, or fear of being burned by a hot stove burner if your hand gets too close. But that’s different than the kind of fear that grips you if you have to speak in front of a crowded room, or prepare to receive some potentially bad news. That’s a crippling kind of fear.
But consider this. Here’s an acronym for the word fear; Future Events Appearing Real. We often imagine the worst thing happening. And what it boils down to, in many cases, is fear of someone else’s reaction, or worse, judgment. We think thoughts like, “what if I make a mistake,” “what if they laugh at me,” or “what if I don’t do it right?” As long as you let questions like these dominate your thought process you can forget about change. It won’t happen. When you ask those questions, you’ve perceived the answer already, and it’s not good.
Coach Tess Marshall says this about fear, “Fear is a habit, so is self-pity, defeat, anxiety, despair, hopelessness and resignation. You can eliminate all of these negative habits with two simple resolves, I can! and I will.” Tom Hopkins said, “Do what you fear most and you control fear.”
Fear is an emotion. Emotions originate in the brain. When you begin to teach your mind a new way of perceiving circumstances, you can realize that fears don’t dominating your thoughts anymore. When a fearful emotion begins to surface, don’t give into it. Ask yourself; “what is really the worst thing that can happen?” What is the likelihood that it will? When you realize that rarely do you experience your worst case scenario, you can begin to relax and focus on reality. And that is, you can do it. And you can trust yourself.
Daily Life Journey 