I love this graphic.
I’m not sure who created it, but I find it incredibly simple and motivating.
I remembered these circles the other night when I was having dinner with an author friend who was telling me about how he comes up with his ideas and meets his deadlines. “Fear,” he responded. It sparked a good conversation about putting ourselves in uncomfortable situations, allowing fear to motivate potential success. I went home that night inspired to tackle something I’d been contemplating for a while, but just needed a swift kick in the butt to get it started.
Fear has always been a part of the human experience. Back when we were being chased around by predators and living in physically difficult times, we focused on survival. That fear to stay alive drove us to protect ourselves. In today’s world, our predators come in different forms, and our fear has taken a different shape. However, regardless of what scares the heck out of us, fear continues to motivate us to move forward. The things that scare us may have evolved, but change, uncertainty, and the unfamiliar can sometimes be just as frightening as a lion hot on our heels.
And while some fear is warranted and can serve to protect us, there’s a real downside if we embrace it too tightly. When we allow the fear to take priority, we dismiss all the amazing stuff that that fear could potentially fuel. Life is an open door. You can allow fear to drive you to push the door shut...or you can open the door, embrace the unknown, and allow yourself to explore the opportunities. Need a little more motivation to take a deep breath and launch out of your comfort zone? Consider the following:
FEAR CAN LEAD TO OPPORTUNITY
When you have a private moment and you think about your place in the world, do you want to identify as someone who runs from fear, or as someone who tackles it straight on? If you opt for the latter, it doesn’t mean you are nervous and sweating as you do it; that just makes you human. It does, however, mean you are making a choice to be open to what’s possible.
FEAR CAN LEAD TO PERSONAL GROWTH
Ok, so maybe your job is ok enough, or that girl you’ve been dating is just fine. You know what to expect in these situations, and that comfort is tolerable and predictable, even if you don’t find it inspiring. For whatever reason, that familiarity brings comfort...and we humans tend to like that. A little bit of that is just fine. However, if we live in this zone for too long, we stagnate our learning. The world is a dynamic, constantly changing place; do you want to remain static while the world changes around you? It doesn’t matter what it is you choose to do; just start small by choosing something that scares you, embrace the discomfort, and give it a try. Then evaluate how empowered you feel when you’ve accomplished it.
FEAR CAN CAUSE US TO FAIL, AND THAT’S COOL TOO
I trend pretty high on the risk index. When I am about to tackle something that scares me, I often motivate myself by thinking, “what is the worst thing that can happen?” If I can imagine those worst case scenarios, I can edit my actions to avoid or plan for them and radically eradicate much of the fear before I’ve ever started. We all experience vulnerability, and the concern that if we take the risk it might fail. And you might. However, whether it’s a success or a fail, you are guaranteed to end up somewhere new. Everyone benefits from a little new in their lives from time to time.
FEAR CAN BECOME OUR BFF
Even the most organized and planful among us cannot predict everything in life. There is no real certainty, and if we spend our time constantly trying to avoid it, we’ll never be completely successful. Rather than spend your time stressing out about whether or not you can keep everything in your life from changing, embrace the notion that your fears can better help you navigate the inevitable ups and downs of life.
FEAR CAN FORCE YOU TO TAP INTO YOUR INNER BADASS
Stop for a moment and remember back to the times you were most proud. Or the time where you grew the most. I’ll bet that either situation came from a time where you were filled with fear about whether or not you could accomplish that thing. And you did. See how that works? When you force yourself to consider your life, you likely aren’t going to remember the hours spent at your desk or the routine things you did that filled your days. You’ll cherish the memories of the risks you took - things like that new job, falling in love, moving to a new city. You’ll also remember when some of those things didn’t work, and you face planted. But you always got back up and tried again. When we survive those bumps along the journey, we don’t just learn. We emerge as a stronger person. Who doesn’t love that?
Fear can prevent us from moving forward, or it can serve as a motivator. When we tackle it head on, regardless of how scary it might be at the start, you will be forced to acknowledge your real capabilities. Push yourself to embrace your fears and truly great things that can happen when you do.