Introduction to FEAR

Have you ever heard someone said this: "Oh, no! I'm not going to do that! I'm not interested on it." 

It's already very obvious that the feeling of being uncomfortable is just the reason for not pursuing or doing something.

As I mention on my previous posts, the fundamental sensations we come across when hitting the walls of the comfort zone include fear, guilt, unworthiness, hurt feelings, and anger. Feeling any of the item, we say we're uncomfortable, right? When we try to tilt the barriers of our comfort zone, we tend to be discouraged - and discouragement is the primary barrier why we are not living our dreams.

Let's take a closer look first at FEAR.

Have you ever feared on something or someone. Like your gonna fail on your subject? or board exam? or you didn't solved the problem your boss is asking from you? or whatever you fear the most. It is probably the most common limiting emotion, PERIOD.

We fear to do new things and we also fear in addition to other negative emotions. For instance, we feel heartbroken, and we're afraid to feel heartbroken. We feel guilt, and we're also afraid to feel the same guilt. Even when we fear something, we're often afraid to feel the fear. This is commonly known as "worrying about your worries" or kung binisaya pa, "Gaduda sa imong duda"


Physically, we feel fear in the stomach area. In its extreme forms, it is accompanied with adrenaline rush, quickening of the pulse, sharpening of the sense, and widening of the eyes.

When I had a training back when I was still in networking, the trainer once described FEAR in an acronym: False Expectation Appearing Real. In many instances, what we imagine is what we fear. Our mind is only imagining things that has not happened yet arising from the anticipation of disgust, accident, disaster, or any forms of evil.


For example, why do some fear snakes? And some do not?


For those who fear snakes, they are afraid because they might be bitten and poisoned. For those who aren't,  they know that the snake is poisonous, but they are not thinking that it will bite them. So what's the assumption there? The former expects that the snake will bite him.


Hardly ever do we do the things we fear, so we never know if our expectation of an accident was accurate. The truth of the matter is, when we don't execute the thing we are afraid of, we get a sigh as if it in fact would have taken place. "That was really close!" we say, even though we never got close to anything but only a negative thought.

Acording to John Roger, this is what will happen to you if you will not face your fear:

Fear raises lack of experience, lack of experience breeds ignorance, ignorance creates more fear. It is a vicious cycle you will never conquer unless you face your fears.

For example, your dream is to become a pilot but you fear to fly a plane. This creates the thought of "not flying a plane at all" but still you want to be a pilot. You had lack of experience because you didn't try flying a plane. In turn, you create ignorance and you think that you might crash if you fly a plane. Then you've created more fear and the process goes on until you have not overcome your fear. 


This is also the same if your planning to be an Engineer yet you don't want to make a lot  of solving. Or be a chef but you don't want to cook. Or be an entrepreneur but don't want to face a client. Sounds stupid isn't it?

This is one of the greatest fallacy of existence. And when people take courage to journey into the center of their fear, they only find one thought - NOTHING! It's only many layer's of untrue fears and the process of being afraid of itself.  


Ladies and gentlemen, I know tell you that "Fear is in the mind". Everything is in the mind. You just have to fix the way you think. (Later on my next posts, I'll tell you how the process of thinking works).

This truth is either comic or tragic. When people would experience this, they are often seen either crying or laughing. I hope you too have come to a point wherein you've proven to yourself that "there's nothing to be afraid of"or if you haven't, then make it a try and face the fears overcoming you towards your dreams.

In anytime, we permit illusory fears, including those untested fears, to keep us from moving toward our dreams. For most of us, the insanity of fear only produces discomfort and inaction.

And more fear.