I have been thinking about the “F” word quite a bit over the last few days. The hold it has over our lives. The way it can taint everything and make us question ourselves.
Fear.
It’s something that we all have to deal with. Whenever we seek to move out of our comfort zone it is there niggling at us. And while we are often told to “follow our gut” this too often gets clouded by doubt and overthinking.
But here is the thing. If you want to grow as a person you cannot make decisions from a place of fear. Fear creates paralysis. It is impossible to achieve growth from a place of fear.
The challenge is that we are born to be fearful. Our brains are wired to look for danger, to keep us safe. It wants us to stay exactly where we are because that is comfortable – even if it isn’t doing us any good. So making decisions to move into new spaces is scary at a biological level.
Yet if we know that our fear is often a misguided attempt by our brain to keep us safe then we can weigh up our options and say “thanks, but I’m doing it anyway!”
Of course I am not suggesting you should ignore risks or red flags. As long as you are dealing with facts then you are not making a fear based decision. Fear is different because it’s about imagined failures and losses.
What if I never find another job? What if I don’t meet someone else? What if I regret moving? What if the money is wasted? What if I don’t succeed?
It’s a Fantasised Experience Appearing Real.
So if you are thinking of making a positive change in your life and your inner voice keeps telling you to be careful – ask yourself is this a voice of reason or fear. Is it keeping you safe or stuck?
If you can stop acting (or not acting) out of fear then you will find your life opens up with immense possibilities.
