FEAR.....is it an obstacle that's in the way of you having what you think you most desire or is it a catalyst propelling you forward towards your vision?
"Ultimately we know deeply that the other side of every fear is a freedom." — Marilyn Ferguson (b. 1938), Writer, author
This quote speaks to both "I know I can do this, I can figure it out"-freedom and "what if I fail and get hurt (again)-pain." Why do we constantly choose to be in pain? I believe that when fear strikes you often forget what you already know, you forget to build upon the great lesson(s) you learned from another experience, you forget how you grew from your past experiences, you forget that you made it through alive after facing your fear, you forget the feeling of freedom that came with facing your fear and the only remember the accompanying pain, and you forget that you don't have to do it alone.
Instead you choose to stand in front of the fear, you notice the fear which often has brought it's companion pain and like a small child say ouch, that's hot and stand back not willing to put the fire out for fear of getting hurt. The problem is that the fear (the fire) is there and doesn't go away, it continues to burn. Unfortunately and fortunately the only way to make it go away is to face it, recognize what it is, jump in (yes there will probably be some pain) and realize that only you have the inner strength to put that fire out - no one can do it for you. And tell yourself, the longer I wait the bigger that fire will get and know you can ask for help as an incentive to take action.
We cannot escape fear. We can only transform it into a companion that accompanies us on all our exciting adventures. — Susan Jeffers
Based upon what I hear from many of my business clients it's something most of us run from which creates I see as an unconscious embrace of fear.
An unconscious embrace could look like this (around money): You have a business and it's March 9th and you haven't begun to put the financial information together to bring to your accountant or CPA. In fact you're smiling because you know that right now you don't have an accountant or CPA and all your receipts are piled somewhere, but you know you have your credit card and bank statements, at least most of them and you know you can figure it all out. Why the procrastination? Is there a little fear of finding out that possibly you owe a lot of money to the IRS or possibly you may find out you actually have a hobby and not a business (I classify a hobby as one that spends more than it earns), or possibly you have plenty of money in your business and just keep saying you have more important things to worry about. Then you remember your promise - this year you promised yourself and your team you would have it done before April 15th and have a short and long term strategy in place. A conscious embrace of fear could look like this (around creating what you're known for, your legacy): You're so busy and wrapped in the details and piles of mail and email that you don't have time to be strategic or think about pulling out the notes you kept saying you would use to create your updated business vision and marketing plan. In fact, each time you find you have a little momentum (which feels great...you feel like "yes, this is why I'm doing this", something out of the blue happens...some one quits, you lose one of your best clients which accounts for a significant portion of your revenue (you justify it by saying "yeah, I know." You do know you shouldn't have all your eggs in one basket, but you couldn't help it...the money is good, you love the client and besides you just are so busy you don't have the time). Instead you spend a lot of time worrying about your business but in actually you do nothing to create a solution...and this creates more fear and pain. You feel paralyzed, and wonder how can this be happening? So what do you think you're not knowing is embracing? What would knowing, having all the cards out on the table and taking action embrace? It takes a courageous person to choose to consciously face their fear and remember they don't have to do it alone. Here a are couple more deep quotes to help you remember, you can do it, the right people do show up at the right time - simply notice and choose to take action and watch your self confidence grow. "To fight fear, act. To increase fear–wait, put off postpone." — David Joseph Schwartz
The way to develop self-confidence is to do the thing you fear & get a record of successful experiences behind you. Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved. — William Jennings Bryant (1860-1925), Writer, essayist, critic
What quotes do you use to help you embrace freedom?
You're amazing. Just from reading your posts I admire you. Keep it up.
-Meg
Posted by: Meganne | April 09, 2005 at 03:43 PM