The more you ruminate over a thought the more power you give it. If you’re like me you probably think pretty often about the things you don’t want to happen, your concerns and your insecurities. Experiencing these negative thoughts is part of being human, they pass through us in the course of the day and as long as that is all they are doing they are harmless. However these negative thoughts have the potential to be disastrous; when we play a concern over and over again in our minds it becomes fear and that fear becomes a barrier between ourselves and what we want. For example, you’re in class and there is an ongoing discussion, you have something you want to say but a little voice in your mind goes “I’m probably wrong.” And then as all the possible negative (and probably a little over-dramatic) consequences come unbidden into your mind, that voice becomes louder and louder and so you give up and keep your mouth shut. Fear wins.
So how do we prevent these fears from taking over? Here are some tips on being fearless:
- Stop. Breathe. Let go. The moment you start feeling nervous or concerned about something force yourself to take a deep breath and relax your muscles. Look at the big picture, and remind yourself that whatever happens you are going to be just fine, it’s true!
- Don’t worry, be happy. One of the best ways to combat worry is to be happy! When you start feeling overwhelmed put on one of your favorite songs, call someone you love or have some chocolate! Do something you know will put you in a better mood and it will!
- Laugh. Everyone loves to laugh, and there’s a reason why! Laughing releases endorphins and automatically lifts our mood, even just smiling can do the trick! So go look up a clip from The Office and see how watching Dwight get thwarted by Jim once again makes you feel ten times better.
- Follow the greats. Do you think Steve Jobs, Taylor Swift, J.K. Rowling or Ghandi stopped because they were scared? Nope. Not even a little bit. They knew what they wanted, had the vision and went for it. I’m sure they all had their doubts and had people who questioned them but the most successful people acknowledge their fear and then move past it.
I hope this helps to overcome your fears, we all have them but that doesn’t mean they should stop us from getting what we want.
So good luck and as always comment to let me know what you think! What fears are in your way?
xx
Miranda
Miranda Kate 