Many great dreams has come to nothing because of the great word FEAR.
What is fear? An unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat. As for what is fear biologically speaking, when a person experiences fear, certain areas in their brain such as the amygdala and the hypothalamus are immediately activated and appear to control the first physical response to fear. Chemicals such as adrenaline and the stress hormone cortisol are released into the blood stream causing certain physical reactions such as:
- Rapid heart rate
- Increased blood pressure
- Tightening of muscles
- Sharpened or redirected senses
- Dilation of the pupils (to let in more light)
- Increased sweating
But fear is not always bad. A small amount of fear before an important speech serves a purpose – it encourages you to focus on your topic and avoid making a fool of yourself. This is one of the types of fear that can be useful to sharpen our minds. But some types of fear is that is excessive can be crippling and can put you on hold and even make you feel like escaping when it is not appropriate to do so.
When fear gets out of control, or when we fear something that cannot actually harm us, it can escalate to a point where it effects our daily functioning. Fear is no longer adaptive if we find we are constantly afraid of events that haven’t happened yet. So how do we overcome fear?
See Courage as Important than Security
Several surveys have shown that most people value “security” over just about everything else in their lives. People will put up with jobs that they hate, marriages that make them miserable, and habits that are killing them simply to feel more secure.
To conquer fear, you must consciously dethrone “security” as the thing that you value most in your life and replace it with the active virtue of “courage.” You must decide, once and for all, that it’s more important for you to have the courage to do what you must to succeed, rather than to cling to the things that make you feel safe.
Differentiate Between Fear & Prudence
Most fears are irrational and unreasonable. For example, you might be afraid to make an important call because if the call doesn’t go well, you’ll have to face the fact that you “failed.” Or you might be afraid to confront a co-worker who acts like a bully, or to start your own business because you’re not certain you’ve got what it takes.
It’s these irrational fears that hold you back and keep you from being more successful.
That said, there are other kinds of fear that are actually just simple prudence. For example, you might be afraid to drive aggressively because you might cause an accident. Or you might be afraid to be arrested if you sell a product that kills people.
Prudence is a good thing. Just make sure you aren’t pretending to be prudent–when you’re just trying to avoid taking reasonable business risks, for instance, or putting yourself on the line to do what’s necessary.
Handle Fear as a Call to Action
If what you fear is outside of your control, write down a specific plan of the exact steps that you’ll take in order to adapt, if and when it happens. Once you’ve completed that task, put the plan aside and have the courage to forget about it. You’ve done what you can; it’s time to move on.
But if what you fear is inside your control–some action that you’re afraid to take, that is–take a few moments to prepare yourself, then do the thing that’s scaring you.
Do that now. Don’t wait till tomorrow or next week. Right now, before you read the rest of this post. Call that person. Write that email. Create a business plan. Do it now!
Convert Fear Into Excitement
Finally, tune in to the aspect of fear that’s really fun. Think about the last time you rode a roller coaster: You probably felt plenty of fear, but you were also having a great time.
Let’s face it, a life without fear–and without the courage to overcome fear–would be pretty bland and insipid.
Learn to overcome your fear and be on your way to success.
A personal note: I want to add that there was a time in my life when “security” was so important to me that I was willing to tolerate being truly miserable. I won’t bore you with the details, but let’s just say that it was only when I changed my thinking (using the formula above) that my life came together.
Today, I’m actually really excited whenever I discover something that I’m afraid to do, because I know that something wonderful is going to happen–provided I summon the courage to take action!
samuelmensah 