The famous and often quoted motivational statement, "The Only Thing To Fear Is Fear Itself..." was coined by Franklin D. Roosevelt back in the day when financial markets were collapsing in the late 1920's and he attempted to calm America's fears. I suppose this phrase has some truth to it but according to the scriptures, there is indeed more to fear than this type of fear - which is obviously the unhealthy, irrational and poisonous emotions triggered by an expectation of terror or tragedy.
This post is not a theological approach to fear but it's worth a study since the scriptures have much to say about positive / healthy fear vs negative unhealthy fears. Here is a link to the Bible scriptures dealing with fear. So you will see that fear can be a very good friend or a formidable foe and that's which aspect of fear we are going to concentrate on here.
For the purposes of this conversation, we are going to be very specific by focusing on the toxic, deceptive and irrational fear that creeps into our hearts, minds and souls. The form of fear that imprisons us and prohibits us from functioning, taking action, serving, loving, risking, responding, performing, producing, thinking and creating at high, healthy levels. But still, this is too broad because of all the physical implications, causes and manifestations, etc. So, we are going to go narrower to focus only on peeling the layers back on overcoming fears that are triggered by negative expectations of future events or potential outcomes.
Think back for a moment when you may have been completely immobilized or even paralyzed by an illusion of fear, about something that may or may not actually happen. But your expectation was clearly focused on the negative outcome of the situation. Obviously there are different degrees of fear and a variety of contributing factors but let's look at some of the leading "fears" and fear triggers that seem to hav the tightest grip on us as it relates to our mission.
When I ask the question - "...So, what's holding you back from kicking your comatose career to the curb and going after your entrepreneurial calling...?" Common fear infused "What If" responses (excuses) include. So...What if I run out of money, how can I be certain things are going to work out according to my plan, what will my family, peers think and say, what if I'm not successful, what about benefits, it's just not the right time, etc. Now in fairness, there are some viable "considerations" here and obviously it's wise to be prudent but that's not what we are talking about.
Each one of these has an opposite and equally positive expectation on the other side of the equation. Start by journalling how you respond to life and approach decision making. Inability to make decisive decisions is due to fear of the unknown (not enough clarity) or fear of the outcome, or making the "wrong" decision so now pride is coming to the party. As you start practicing positive expectancy (not some hopium strategy) but sincere success focused outcomes you will start to see your whole mindset and body shift and thrive.
Create a ledger with two sides, line down the middle. Label the left-side column - "Positive Expectation", and the other column "Negative Expectation" and start tracking decisions, starting with the decision to ditch the soul draining day-job or transform your career to a CALLINGPRENEUR Adventure.
If you'd like to get some guidance on this strategy for overcoming irrational fears that may be holding you back, let's jump on a complimentary coaching call and work through some exercises. Click Here for my personal calendar to book a call.
Also, check out our recent podcast here with Art Costello, author of the book "Expectation Therapy", coach and counselor helping people at a deep level deal with fear issues.