We are all afraid of something. Whether it is fear of what may happen today or tomorrow or fear of the consequences of yesterday – we all seem to be able to find something to be afraid of every single day. We fear change and we fear staying the same. We fear living and we fear dying. In business, fear can destroy everything that you´ve worked so hard to achieve.
So, why is it that fear has such a powerful hold over us? Essentially, fear is a primal instinct built into us so that we can anticipate change and react quickly in life–threatening situations. Whenever we sense danger (be it physical, psychological or otherwise) our sympathetic nervous system is stimulated and we are mobilised to either fight or flee. We experience this as fear.
The problem is that this primitive kind of system is somewhat at odds with life in modern society. The fight–or–flight instinct may be useful when there are dinosaurs running around and you have little more than a loin cloth with which to defend yourself, but it can be crippling when it reduces the complex human mind to a state of chronic anxiety. In other words, because humans are able to think long term, many of us have become stuck in fight–or–flight mode. As a result, much of the essence of who we are is often locked up behind our fear and we find ourselves only half–living our lives.
Fear is an emotion so powerful that we experience it as a physical sensation. When you are consumed with fear, you are unable to access the talent and potential that you already possess within yourself. It blinds you to the abundance that is all around you.
If you are going to live a truly contented and fulfilling life, you have to conquer your fears; and there are primarily two ways of going about this – you can either face your fear head-on until it loses its hold over you, or you can just let it go. Neither approach is easy, but both work.
You will be able to overcome your fears if you have enough energy, power and excitement to face whatever reality is causing you to feel afraid; i.e. use your fight–or–flight instinct to your advantage. Do not leave the adrenalin that your fear is creating to fester in your body – use it to give you the courage to challenge your fear head–on. You will find that you have more power within you than you ever imagined.
If you are not comfortable with such an aggressive approach, there is another, equally valuable, option. Try to quieten your mind so as to free up all of the energy that is being drained by your emotion. You may not realise it, but you require much more energy to feel afraid than to get rid of your fear.
Regardless of the strategy you choose, what is important is that you are doing something about your fear. It is often, ironically, getting to the point where you are brave enough to do something about it that is the most challenging part. Yes, we are even afraid of confronting our fears.
