Face the Fear, and Do It Anyway

Fear is a funny thing. It holds us back, keeps us from achieving our goals, stagnates our growth. No doubt it's one of the most powerful forces that influences human behavior. How much more could mankind have accomplished, had fear not stood in the way?

Living fearlessly is a tough task - one that few people are ever able to accomplish. And frankly, it's not living without fear that's the true goal ... it's the ability to face fears that's truly priceless.

If you ask the world's most successful people, most will admit to being scared, but push forward with their dreams anyway.

Dealing with our fears is a crucial lesson. Sure, we can skate by in life by avoiding all the things we fear, but will we ever truly accomplish anything? I'm beginning to wonder.

Running away is easy, and frankly, the "fight or flight" instinct is part of our biology. The survival of our cavemen ancestors often meant the necessity to flee.

But in modern times, those instincts can betray us. Fighting through fear is what high-achievers do. Nobody said it was easy, and in fact, sometimes nothing is harder.

Look at the contestants on American Idol. Don't they feel fear every week performing in front of millions of people? I assure you, they do. And that's part of why they're so fantastic.

Don't you think Lance Armstrong felt fear in his first race? Or Steve Jobs when he released his first computer? The fear of failure, of pain, of defeat ... these are all common fears that afflict us all.

But life is about facing these fears. Dealing with them, and pursuing our goals in spite of strong emotions. It's a tough lesson to learn, but one that can carry us all the way through life, and help us to achieve our wildest dreams. As someone once said, "Face the fear, and do it anyway." Amen.

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