Writing Prompt – What do You Fear?
This week we’re going to write about what you’re afraid of. Take just a few moments and write down a few of the things that you’re afraid of. Not just things like sharks with laser beams attached to their heads, but things like “failure” or “public speaking” or “getting hurt”. What are some things that you’re not taking action on because of fear? Write those down too. Take some time to write down some decisions that you’re making based on fear too.
Identifying Fears
It’s important to identify what you’re afraid of. Fear clouds your judgement and vision. Fear makes it difficult to make good decisions. Fear can make it hard to see all of your available options. Fear can take over your emotions, basing your decisions on the wrong judgements.
Your Comfort Zone
Your comfort zone is the area that you feel comfortable acting in. It’s where you feel safe, and where you won’t feel stress. Often times, we make decisions that keep us in our comfort zones because we’re afraid to leave them. We confuse consciously making choices that keep us in our comfort zone as growth simply because we’re making a choice. We don’t see that we’re not growing, but that we’re just staying busy. In order to grow, you need to reach outside of your comfort zone. To do that, you need to make goals that fall outside of where you’re comfortable.
When you choose to stay within your comfort zone, you’re missing out on growth. You will fail sometimes, everybody does. It’s how we grow. You fall when you’re learning to walk. You fall when you’re learning to ride a bike. You’ll fall when you reach outside of your comfort zone, and that’s okay. You can always dust yourself off and get back up.
You’ll also find that those things that you’re so afraid of will actually give you the wings you need to do your best work. You’ll find strength you didn’t know you had. Like a spring of water, you’ll find hidden talents that you didn’t know existed that will help you for years to come. You’ll find the insight and strength that you need to face new challenges that you don’t even know are on the horizon yet.
What types of choices are you making that keep you in your comfort zone? What types of choices could you be making that take you outside of your comfort zone? How do you think you’ll benefit from reaching outside of your comfort zone?
You Don’t Have to Climb the Whole Mountain
You don’t have to take on the entire mountain range right now. You just have to start. You just have to take action. Often times, the things we have to do look awfully big, daunting, and difficult. It feels overwhelming. If you just start, you’ll find that just starting down the path will get you closer than you were when you hadn’t even started. You’ll also find that just making progress will fill you with courage and confidence. You don’t have to take on the entire mountain range, you just have to start.
What big goals are you afraid of because you’re not sure how to accomplish them? How can you start?
Vulnerability
It’s not just blind bravery that will get you through fear. You identify your fears so that you can be emotionally vulnerable. Vulnerability is putting yourself in a position that could potentially hurt you. When you are willing to be vulnerable, you are choosing to be brave. Vulnerability is bravery. It doesn’t mean that you go out and start telling all your personal business on social media in an effort to be vulnerable, but it does mean that sometimes you choose to do the hard thing that you’re not sure you can do, even though you may feel silly. It means writing down what you’re afraid of, and admitting it to yourself. It’s okay to be afraid, everybody is. Being vulnerable enough to admit your fears is the first brave step in being able to move forward.
What can you be vulnerable about?
Fear & Caution
Just as vulnerability acts in opposite of blind bravery, so does caution. Caution is not fearful. Blind valor does not conquer fear. Often times, we need to move with caution. Caution keeps us safe, and allows us to move forward in safety with some level of security. For example, you wouldn’t decide to hike an entire mountain in flip flops, you’d choose to put on good shoes before taking that on so that your feet could get you through the trip. Good shoes, preferably hiking boots, would keep your feet warm, dry, and safe from sharp rocks, and perhaps even insect and other bites and stings. This choice is acting in caution. It’s not weak to act in caution. It’s what allows you to move forward and find success. When you identify your fears, you can also identify what precautions you’ll take in order to minimize your exposure to risk and keep going, safely.
What precautions can you take that will still allow you to move forward?
Moving Forward
In the future, you’re going to look back on this writing prompt and be thankful that you were vulnerable enough to identify your fears. You’ll find that some of your fears were silly. You’ll find that some of them were well founded, but that you were able to identify precautions that you could take so that you could keep going, keep working on your goals. Either way, you’ll be thankful that you moved forward with courage and purpose.
