Fear of the Unknown
We all experience fear, for many reasons. We have to. We need fear. We are programmed to deal with it in one of two ways. We can fight or we can run away. That fight or flight thing has been the instinct that has preserved the human race.
We still have that instinct. It will never go away. Our fears are a bit different, now that we don't have to be concerned about our survival every single day. In a first world country, we aren't worried about being attacked by animals, starvation, thirst or being attacked by the neighboring tribe. Or are we?
In this society, we still have wild animals. There are bears, wolves, alligators and bobcats. There are also many people in this country who don't eat regularly enough and have no idea where their next meal is coming from. There are still bad people out there, who would sooner kill us than join us in the human family.
We live with those fears. We try not to think about them. We go about our daily lives and we say, 'We're fine. We're safe. We have enough to eat and drink.' But, deep down, we know that all of that could go away in the blink of an eye. We know we could die today. We know our loved ones could, too. We live with it. We don't let it get us down... except when we do.
I don't say these things to scare you. I say them to help you acknowledge your own fears. After the survival fears, there are so many others. There's the fear of losing your job, your house, your children, your spouse. There's the fear of simply missing out on whatever dream you have. There's the fear of the unknown.
The 'unknown' takes many forms. It's a surprise party. It's a new vacation destination. It's falling in love. It's becoming a parent. It's also fear of any kind of change. There's a vast spectrum, when it comes to fear. Some people thrive on change and would be miserable without it. Some people hate change and strive to keep every single thing in their lives the same. In between those two groups are the rest of us. We like some change, but strive to keep many things the same. I love change. I get bored easily, but there are some things that I need to remain constant. I need my family. I need a few good friends. I need to learn something every day.
When we change too much, too quickly and we don't have a solid foundation to fall back on, that's when we hit the wall of FEAR. We say, 'I can't do this!' and no one is there to say, 'Yes, you can! You've done harder things than this! I know you can do this and I will help you!'
We don't like to admit that we need those people to help us on our journey. I don't, anyway. I would like to be able to reach down deep into my own soul and say, 'Yes, I can do this. It's hard, but it will get easier. I have untapped strength. I have riches and abilities. I haven't even scratched the surface of my own potential.'
On a good day, I can say those things to myself and the people I love. On a bad day, I don't. On a bad day, I don't even want to hear it from them. This post is written to everyone who's having a bad day, including my future self.
We can do this! We will overcome our fear of failure. We will conquer the unknown. We will rise to the occasion! When we do, we will have uncovered a new strength. It will keep getting easier. We will keep getting better. The unknown will become known and then, we will reach our goals.
It's happening. Change is happening. Let's get to work!
We still have that instinct. It will never go away. Our fears are a bit different, now that we don't have to be concerned about our survival every single day. In a first world country, we aren't worried about being attacked by animals, starvation, thirst or being attacked by the neighboring tribe. Or are we?
In this society, we still have wild animals. There are bears, wolves, alligators and bobcats. There are also many people in this country who don't eat regularly enough and have no idea where their next meal is coming from. There are still bad people out there, who would sooner kill us than join us in the human family.
We live with those fears. We try not to think about them. We go about our daily lives and we say, 'We're fine. We're safe. We have enough to eat and drink.' But, deep down, we know that all of that could go away in the blink of an eye. We know we could die today. We know our loved ones could, too. We live with it. We don't let it get us down... except when we do.
I don't say these things to scare you. I say them to help you acknowledge your own fears. After the survival fears, there are so many others. There's the fear of losing your job, your house, your children, your spouse. There's the fear of simply missing out on whatever dream you have. There's the fear of the unknown.
The 'unknown' takes many forms. It's a surprise party. It's a new vacation destination. It's falling in love. It's becoming a parent. It's also fear of any kind of change. There's a vast spectrum, when it comes to fear. Some people thrive on change and would be miserable without it. Some people hate change and strive to keep every single thing in their lives the same. In between those two groups are the rest of us. We like some change, but strive to keep many things the same. I love change. I get bored easily, but there are some things that I need to remain constant. I need my family. I need a few good friends. I need to learn something every day.
When we change too much, too quickly and we don't have a solid foundation to fall back on, that's when we hit the wall of FEAR. We say, 'I can't do this!' and no one is there to say, 'Yes, you can! You've done harder things than this! I know you can do this and I will help you!'
We don't like to admit that we need those people to help us on our journey. I don't, anyway. I would like to be able to reach down deep into my own soul and say, 'Yes, I can do this. It's hard, but it will get easier. I have untapped strength. I have riches and abilities. I haven't even scratched the surface of my own potential.'
On a good day, I can say those things to myself and the people I love. On a bad day, I don't. On a bad day, I don't even want to hear it from them. This post is written to everyone who's having a bad day, including my future self.
We can do this! We will overcome our fear of failure. We will conquer the unknown. We will rise to the occasion! When we do, we will have uncovered a new strength. It will keep getting easier. We will keep getting better. The unknown will become known and then, we will reach our goals.
It's happening. Change is happening. Let's get to work!
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