Fear can hold us back massively in life if we let it stop us from pursuing our biggest goals and dreams. However, fear is simply a state of mind and you can learn to overcome it if you choose to. You can gain back control of your life and stop allowing fear to control you. When you learn to feel the fear but take action anyway, you will unlock success in your life.

If you go back to caveman days, fear was a part of everyday life because we constantly had to be on alert. We had dangers such as predators hunting us. So, we learned that we should be fearful of things that are a threat to us for survival. It is ingrained into our brains and the fight or flight mode is there to protect us.

However, fast forward to current times and we still let fear dictate our lives in certain areas. It’s highly unlikely a tiger’s going to come and attack you!

Many of us have fears because of our state of mind and the fear of failing or looking stupid to other people. Don’t let fear hold you back from living your best life and reaching your full potential. You can overcome fear and reach all the goals that you set yourself with a little work and a change of mindset.

Fear is Only in Your Head

We weren’t born afraid of failing, we learned to be afraid due to other people’s opinions and negative experiences in our lives. However, if we learn something, we can unlearn it.

When you were a child and were beginning to learn to walk, you would have seen everyone around you walking. You thought to yourself “I want to do that”. So, what did you do? You tried and failed countless times. You would have fallen over hundreds of times before you finally managed to walk by yourself. However, you would have been encouraged by those around you and they would have praised you and pushed you to achieve your goal. You didn’t give up at the first, second, or even hundredth hurdle. Instead, you kept on going and trying because you had no fear and everyone was telling you that you could do it.

When we become adults, however, we let the fear of failure, hitting obstacles and challenges, and other people’s negative comments stop us from pursuing our dreams.

We think that we’re not good enough because people tell us we’ll never be able to do something. Therefore, we self-sabotage and speak negatively to ourselves and we see failures as bad things. Instead of picking ourselves back up, trying again, and learning from our mistakes, we let fear take over.

However, you need to change your mindset and see setbacks as learning experiences. Start practicing positive self-talk, drown out the sound of other people’s opinions, and start believing in your capabilities. Then, you will realise that you can do anything you want.

If you learn to control your thoughts and think positively then you will be able to control your emotions. This will help you to change your habits and lead to lasting positive changes in your life. When you can learn to feel the fear but take action anyway, you will begin to master your life.

Ask Yourself These Questions…

1. What would I do if I wasn’t afraid?
2. If I knew I wouldn’t fail, what would I do?
3. What have I got to lose if I pursued these things?
4. What could I gain if I pursued these things?

Grab yourself a pen and a piece of paper or your journal and answer the questions. Write down anything and everything that comes to mind and don’t be afraid to think big.

Now, Close Your Eyes…

Imagine yourself having all of the things that you’ve been afraid of pursuing because you’re scared you’ll fail or you’ll never be able to achieve these goals.

Vividly imagine yourself going through your day, living your life as the person you’ve always wanted to be. Vision yourself doing the job you’ve always wanted to do, having plenty of money, happy relationships, an amazing body, living where you want, etc. 

How would it feel to live your life without fear and to have all the things you’ve always wanted? Then, think about what emotions you would feel living this life. Write down all the emotions that come to mind in your journal or on your piece of paper.

Start Living That Way Now

Stop letting fear hold you back and start living like the person who has these things. I’m sure you’ve heard of the fake it until you make it saying. Act as if you’ve already reached your goal weight or you’re a successful business woman etc.

Walk more confidently, speak kindly to yourself, wake up earlier, and practice self-care. Start building your website, take that Pilates class, start meditating, or whatever it is that will help you to be the person that you’ve always wanted to be. What have you got to lose!?

It will help you to see yourself more positively and improve your mindset. Remember, you can’t have those things until you’re a person who believes they can and will get them.

Our brains don’t know the difference between what’s real and what we’re telling it/thinking. Therefore, if you start telling yourself that you already have these things and start acting more positively, your brain will think you’re already there and your mindset will change.

Practice positive thoughts and affirmations and you will attract positive things and outcomes into your life. Feel the fear, however, learn to not let it control you, and let it go.

Feel the Fear but do it Anyway… What’s the Worst that Could Happen?

Too often we don’t pursue our dreams because we are scared of other people’s judgments or opinions, even if we don’t want to admit it. We have that nagging voice in the back of our minds saying “You can’t do that”. Or, “You’re not good enough to do that”, or “You don’t deserve that”. More often than not, it’s because of past experiences where people have put us down, mocked us, or belittled us.

You need to stop caring what other people think of you and just go for it. Feel the fear and take action on your goals regardless. Free yourself from thinking about what other people think. You don’t know what’s going on in anyone else’s head and everyone is battling their own issues anyways.

If someone has the time to be negative about your goals then why would you care about their opinion anyway? Start focusing on yourself and what you want out of life and learn to do what’s best for you.

We only regret the things in life that we didn’t do. You don’t want to wake up in 20 years and regret not pursuing your dreams because you were afraid of what other people thought of you or that you might fail. What is the worst that could happen? 

Our fears are often irrational and we tend to think of the worst-case scenario that could happen. 9/10 these things never happen. So, we need to stop being afraid and try it anyway.

But What if I Fail? How to Feel the Fear but Do It Anyway

Every successful person in life has failed before. Failure is inevitable and we have to get out of our heads so much and realise that failure isn’t a bad thing. Everyone “fails” at some point in life and no one has got to the top easily and without failures along the way.

Failure helps you to learn, grow, and get one step closer to where you’re meant to be and what you’re meant to have. Therefore, change your mindset to a positive one and you won’t see these “failures” as killing your dreams. Feel the fear and do it anyway. That way you’ll pick yourself back up again like you did when you were learning to walk. Stop allowing fear to hold you back and don’t stop until you reach your goals.

“Everything you want is on the other side of fear.”– Jack Canfield

Summary

Other Ways to Help Overcome Your Fears

There are numerous techniques that you can use to start overcoming your fears today and start living the life that you’ve always wanted. When you learn to feel the fear but still pursue your goals regardless, you will be one step closer to what you want.

There are lots of free hypnosis sessions that you can listen to on your phone that are targeted at letting go of fears, stresses, worries, and anxieties. I use Joseph Clough’s hypnosis app and not only does it help me to get a deeper and undisturbed sleep; it helps me to think more positively and let go of my fears.

Journaling is also an amazing way to let go of fear, to see things more clearly, and to make a plan of how to achieve your goals. Additionally, guided meditations are also incredible for connecting with your best self and changing your mindset. 

I use Mimi Bouchard’s app, Superhuman and it’s an amazing platform that has several types of meditations to help you to reach your full potential and let go of your fears. Her guided meditations and writing meditations are a great place to start on letting go of your fears and living your life to the fullest.

“If you feed your confidence, you’ll starve your fear.”– Unknown

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