When you give in to your fear, you are stuck in inaction, procrastination, or obsession over perfection.
When you give in to your fear you lose out on discovering new places, meeting new people, finding a soulmate or living your wildest dreams.
When you give in to your fear your life is void of possibility, imagination, and creativity.
Books are unwritten, movies are not produced, ideas are left in the dark, love lies dormant, and the world is robbed of your gifts and talents.
Nothing is impossible
My daughter Kristy was born without a right hand. It does not hold her back!
She’s very involved in CrossFit. CrossFit is a fitness company that describes its strength and conditioning program as “constantly varied, high intensity, functional movement.” (Wikipedia)
One exercise Kristy was unable to do in the past was pull-ups. The owner of the gym had an idea. He designed a special “hook” to fit Kristy’s stub.
She can now do over 100 pull-ups with the best of them. That’s one tiny example of her bold life.
Don’t let fear hold you back
When we hold back out of fear, we hold others back as well.
I write in order to help you move forward when you are afraid. I will continue to encourage you, inspire you, and guide you into living a fearless and bold life.
The following tips will help you let go of your fear.
Don’t believe everything you think. ~ Byron Katie
1. Become aware.
Your fears are stories that run through your mind. Notice the fearful stories that you tell yourself.
For example, if you are afraid to ask someone for what you want it’s probably because you tell yourself that the answer will be “no.” Decide ahead of time that the answer could very well be “yes.”
Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear. ~ Ambrose Redmoon
2. Light your fire.
Create a burning desire. Grow it bigger, stronger, and greater than your fear. Feed your dreams not your fears. If your burning desire is to find a life long partner, make your desire bigger than your fear of rejection.
If your burning desire is to quit your job, grow your desire bigger than your fear of taking action.
Give your power and attention to your desire and let your fear wither and die.
Because of our routines we forget that life is an ongoing adventure. ~ Maya Angelou
3. Imagine a lifetime of expecting the best.
Expect things to go right. Believe that people want to help you. Imagine yourself succeeding. Know that things will work out.
We get what we expect in life. When everything looks grim, don’t give up or give in. Instead, expect the best. Expect a miracle.
Hopeful thinking can get you out of your fear zone and into your appreciation zone.
~ Martha Beck
4. Exchange your fear for gratitude.
Stop what you are doing when you are full of self-doubt, worry, and anxiety. Immediate find two things and two people in your life that you can appreciate.
Focus on the feeling of deep gratitude. Exchange your fear for appreciation.
If you’re afraid of something, of putting yourself out there, of creating a kind of connection or a promise, that’s a clue that you’re on the right track. Go, do that.
~ Seth Godin
5. Permission to be uncomfortable.
Be willing to be embarrassed, nervous, fearful, and sweaty. Move forward. Zig zag. Switch back. Lose your way. You’ll live. You’ll survive. You’ll learn what does and doesn’t work. That’s progress. Success usually doesn’t happen in a straight line or happen overnight.
Fear is a darkroom where negatives develop. ~ Usman B. Asif
6. Give up negativity.
When you fail, accept that it’s normal. Don’t beat yourself up. Don’t be depressed. Don’t give up. Give yourself a limited amount of time on the pity pot. Then create a new plan. Examine other options. Look at the big picture. Fail while daring boldly.
To fear is one thing. To let fear grab you by the tail and swing you around is another. ~ Katherine Paterson
7. Go to the edge.
Push yourself. Go where you haven’t been before. Do what you haven’t done before. When that place becomes routine and comfortable, keep moving. Find a new “edge.” Keep growing and edging forward. Slow growth is better than no growth at all.
One of the most tragic things I know about human nature is that all of us tend to put off living. We are all dreaming of some magical rose garden over the horizon – instead of enjoying the roses that are blooming outside our windows today. ~ Dale Carnegie
8. Recognize your imperfection.
When you can accept that you’re not perfect, you can stop expecting perfection. Give yourself permission to make mistakes. Mistakes offer you the valuable experience of continuous adjustment and growth. There is no need to fear, only to learn, and to grow.
If you really want to do it, you do it. There are no excuses. ~ Bruce Nauman
9. Make no excuses.
Like me, you only have one shot—to make this life passionate, meaningful, and worthwhile.
I would rather be embarrassed, look stupid, get rejected, and fail, than give up the marvelous possibility and gigantic responsibility of making the world a better place by using my gifts and talents.
Click on the link. Grab a copy of Take Your Fear and Shove It. Begin today!
Do you have an idea waiting to be born? When is the last time you did something that scared you?
I love the tips. Too often we end up regretting not stepping up to do something and lose an opportunity. It is okay after we step up and refuse the opportunity – which is what happened to me last week. I felt good because I used my choice. I downloaded Christopher’s book yesterday and looking forward to reading it.
The inspiration from your post is tremendous, Tess. Thank you so much.