| Fear, or negative anxiety, is the modern day | | | | - Fear of risk-taking: you'll never risk, and |
| bubonic plague, infecting millions upon | | | | therefore, never gain. |
| millions of people. It spreads with viral | | | | |
| effect, and leaves behind consequences of | | | | 2. Setting about a plan to attack these |
| mediocrity and regret. This "plague" is | | | | "falsehoods". Without a plan, there is no |
| partly due to societal influences | | | | prescription for removal of these fears. |
| (particularly in a post-9/11 era) and partly | | | | |
| due to individual issues (the tendency to | | | | Dr. Smith's prescriptions: |
| avoid confrontation of that which we fear). | | | | |
| However, whatever the cause, a vaccine is | | | | - For fear of failure: Go out and fail on a |
| available, and it takes the form of moving | | | | daily basis. Get used to it, because humans |
| towards that which we are most afraid of | | | | do fail, and you are human. Might as well |
| Immediately. | | | | learn to live with it. |
| | | | |
| Fear as an acronym stands for "False Evidence | | | | - For fear of success: Get straight in your |
| Appearing Real". This false evidence can take | | | | mind that success is a great alternative to |
| many forms, but the key is that it appears | | | | mediocrity. Really. |
| real. We perceive something to be scarier | | | | |
| than it really is. One good example can be | | | | - For fear of injury: Get back on the bull |
| found in sports, when we fear losing (or | | | | (so to speak) as soon as possible after being |
| failing). Think about it: Is there really | | | | injured (but cleared to compete). The longer |
| anything to be scared of? If you do in fact | | | | you wait, the greater your fear will be. |
| lose, what then will happen? Sure, it might | | | | |
| be painful, but hasn't everyone lost at one | | | | - For fear of risk-taking: take risks, but on |
| point or another in competition? Of course! | | | | a large and frequent scale, and in every area |
| So why fear losing if it happens to everyone? | | | | of your life. Ask people out on dates. Ask |
| Not only is fear of losing or failure a waste | | | | for favors. Tell someone who is bugging you |
| of time-it also puts you in a reactive, more | | | | how you really feel. Ask a sport psychologist |
| passive mode of competing. Reactive, passive | | | | for assistance. (Just kidding, but not |
| competitors are more likely to perform poorly | | | | really!) |
| in a competitive environment. So don't waste | | | | |
| your time fearing losing. Instead, spend your | | | | 3. Moving towards instead of away from these |
| time: | | | | fears. You will discover that the closer you |
| | | | move towards that which you fear, the less |
| 1. Identifying your biggest fears (in sport, | | | | scary those fears are. Sort of like the first |
| in competition, in life). These are the fears | | | | time you stood up to the school bully and |
| that hold you back the most. Fear of failure, | | | | realized that he or she was not so tough when |
| fear of success, fear of injury, fear of risk | | | | confronted. You were perceiving based on |
| taking. | | | | "false evidence". |
| | | | |
| What are the consequences of harboring some | | | | Moving towards fear in your daily life means |
| of these fears? | | | | doing that which you hate/detest/fear/loathe |
| | | | don't want to do, and doing that thing first, |
| - Fear of failure: you will never fully give | | | | before all else. For me, that means going |
| all of yourself to competition if you are | | | | jogging at 7 am on those dark, winter |
| afraid of losing | | | | mornings. For you it might mean something |
| | | | else. However, the key to beating back our |
| - Fear of success: you're less likely to win, | | | | irrational and disabling fears is to run, not |
| obviously, if you have mixed emotions about | | | | walk, towards them at every chance. By doing |
| being able to deal with success (and the | | | | so, you will prove to yourself how silly |
| responsibilities that come with it) | | | | those fears are in the first place, as they |
| | | | provide no inherent value in your life. They |
| - Fear of injury: you're more likely to be | | | | merely hold you back from reaching your true |
| injured, as you will be more tentative | | | | potential. |
| | | | |