What Are You Afraid Of?
Spiders? Heights? Social situations? Death?
Whatever it is you're afraid of, you can rest assured that you're not alone. Fear is a normal and natural reaction, and no matter what others may say, they've been scared, too.
The question really becomes, what do I do with this fear? How do I handle being afraid, especially when it makes me feel so alone? And I think the answer is this: talk about it and do something about it. I know that when I feel fearful, I talk to someone I trust. I lay on the table what makes me scared and nervous, I give it a name, I declare it from the rooftops (ok, not the rooftops - I'm terrified of heights!).
I feel as though giving voice to my uncertainty, my panic, my anxiety, I am diminishing its hold on me. Fear only has the power that we give it. Yes, it's there, it exists, but it doesn't have to cripple us. Fear is an important fact of life. It keeps us alive. Sure, we don't have to hunt for our survival anymore, but "survival" has taken on new meaning in this day and age.
Talking about what scares us is only the beginning, though. Taking action to face our fears moves us toward overcoming them and growing stronger. I've learned a lot about myself and the world by facing my fears.
And what is fear, really? Isn't it just a reaction to the unknown?
There is so much out there that is unknown to each of us. Imagine what it would be like if we just shied away from everything that was new and scary. I can tell you, what I imagine is regret...
I think that I'm more scared of not trying something new at this point in my life. I think that the regret I may feel scares me more than the unknown of something new.
And really, what's the worst that could happen? (By the way, this is my mantra). If I just think of the worst possible thing that could possibly happen to me, then I can put the risk into perspective. Skydiving = possibly death. Maybe not something that I'm ready to try just yet. Starting a new business = financial instability, failure, stress. A much more acceptable risk, perhaps. Travelling to another country for the first time = seriously, how can there be anything bad about that?!?
We learn and grow from new experiences, especially from failure. I'm working hard at having a growth mindset. I'm eager to try new things. I'm still finding it hard to confront certain things, but I hope that through dialogue and experimenting I will learn to be brave. I know with absolute certainty that I want to have experiences, and not regret, as I grow older(up?).
Whatever it is you're afraid of, you can rest assured that you're not alone. Fear is a normal and natural reaction, and no matter what others may say, they've been scared, too.
The question really becomes, what do I do with this fear? How do I handle being afraid, especially when it makes me feel so alone? And I think the answer is this: talk about it and do something about it. I know that when I feel fearful, I talk to someone I trust. I lay on the table what makes me scared and nervous, I give it a name, I declare it from the rooftops (ok, not the rooftops - I'm terrified of heights!).
I feel as though giving voice to my uncertainty, my panic, my anxiety, I am diminishing its hold on me. Fear only has the power that we give it. Yes, it's there, it exists, but it doesn't have to cripple us. Fear is an important fact of life. It keeps us alive. Sure, we don't have to hunt for our survival anymore, but "survival" has taken on new meaning in this day and age.
Talking about what scares us is only the beginning, though. Taking action to face our fears moves us toward overcoming them and growing stronger. I've learned a lot about myself and the world by facing my fears.
And what is fear, really? Isn't it just a reaction to the unknown?
There is so much out there that is unknown to each of us. Imagine what it would be like if we just shied away from everything that was new and scary. I can tell you, what I imagine is regret...
I think that I'm more scared of not trying something new at this point in my life. I think that the regret I may feel scares me more than the unknown of something new.
And really, what's the worst that could happen? (By the way, this is my mantra). If I just think of the worst possible thing that could possibly happen to me, then I can put the risk into perspective. Skydiving = possibly death. Maybe not something that I'm ready to try just yet. Starting a new business = financial instability, failure, stress. A much more acceptable risk, perhaps. Travelling to another country for the first time = seriously, how can there be anything bad about that?!?
We learn and grow from new experiences, especially from failure. I'm working hard at having a growth mindset. I'm eager to try new things. I'm still finding it hard to confront certain things, but I hope that through dialogue and experimenting I will learn to be brave. I know with absolute certainty that I want to have experiences, and not regret, as I grow older(up?).
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