The Price of Fear

In the book "The Process" I talk very little about fear as being an obstacle. I do this on purpose because, while fear is a very natural element of trying to do anything new (unknown), it's impact on us in life is completely a choice. We all have fear. It is those of us who have come to understand the price of giving into fear, who move forward in life. This is why I relate fear to maturity. Fear has had a huge price for all of us. How many opportunities for growth and joy have we missed because we were afraid and so we chose to say no to ourselves, instead of say no to the fear?

The maturation element comes in when we become completely cognitive of the fact that fear has levied a steep price in our life already, and that we will no longer allow it to control us. The ironic thing is that much of fear comes from the element of the unknown. If we knew what was going to happen we would not have fear. We could simply choose to do or not to do, because we know the outcome. Of course this is applicable to all aspects of your business, from approaching someone, to telling your story to following up to providing service. But lets broaden the scope here for a second, because our general approach to fear in life will carry over to our business anyway. Besides, you should already know that my perspective and the way I work and teach is that if you are afraid to talk to someone you are being selfish. You are thinking about yourself and what they might think of you or say to you, etc. The opposite of course is the secret to success...it is not about you. It is that you might have something that can help the other person and you have a responsibility to share it and let them decide. What if you turned the fear around and thought about what might happen in their life if you DON"T give them the chance to learn?

Anyway, back to the broader perspective. It is fear of the unknown that keeps us from acting. What is ironic is that whether we act or not, we are still facing the unknown! The next minute of your life is not known to you. Regardless of what you do or don't do. Should we fear each minute? Of course that's ridiculous to consider, but it is relevant. You can wake up in the morning and say "What's going to happen today?" and this can be a dreadful question or an exciting question. THIS is the choice.

So many of our gifts and of life's joys are suppressed by fear. I used to have an enormous fear of speaking to groups, when I faced this fear I ultimately learned this is an area of gifting. I used to be terribly afraid of roller coasters, when I eventually faced this fear, I found that I absolutely love them. I still have fear when I do things, but I don't allow it to keep me from experiencing life and trying to become more. Every time I do anything that is public there are nagging thoughts "what if they don't like it?" "what if it's not good?" "what if...?" But I do it anyway, and I feel better about it.

This is another way fear robs us.....our self-esteem. Every time we give into our fear, regardless of how we rationalize it, we KNOW we gave in. We feel bad about ourselves. What do you fear? What is it costing you? Make a commitment today to be what God blessed you to be. If it is in your mind and/or heart to do...do it...even if it doesn't work out, the victory over the fear will serve you in so many ways. Life is short. Live it!