Let go of fear

So last week I posed the question: how would your life differ if you chose to live without fear?! I’m not taking Halloween poltergeist sorta fear but the part of you that is always holding you back. The part of you that makes you stay in the safe lane. The part that protects you but also keeps you in a cute box of comfort. Fear is hardwired in all of us. It is the primitive emotion that protects us. Essentially, we condition our minds to be fearful in order to keep our world secure and safe. But to what end? How would your life be different if fear did not exist inside of you?
 
Would you take that job? Would you call that boy? Would you cross the room to talk to someone? Would you ask for a raise? Would you book that trip? Would you text that girl? Would you move to that city? Would you reach out to an old friend you’ve missed? Would you order dessert more? Would you stand up for yourself? Would you tell more people you love them? Would you take more risks? Would you listen to your heart? Would you really live each day like it’s your last?
 
Because with fear comes consequences and one of the main reasons we avoid taking the risks in life is because we fear rejection and hurt. We fear the unknown. We fear the pain of getting emotionally and mentally distressed. We fear people adding to our insecurities. We fear non-acceptance. We never want to throw off the equilibrium of our lives, so we chug along and make the safe choices with manageable expectations. Our better (read: safe) option is to always keep us in the comfort zone. The zone we know how to navigate with our eyes closed.
 
But why do we want to spend our lives with our eyes closed? I fully support feeling safe and comfortable but only to an extent. The reason we should push past fear is because nothing novel and worthy of a future story comes out of the comfort zone. Every great story I have of adventure and excitement and learning and growth has been because I put my fear aside and jumped in head first. So what are you going to do to frame your future stories? How are you going to recognize when fear is holding you back from a new adventure?
 
The answer differs for all of us. And it requires resilience. It requires being ok with rejection, sadness and hurt. Because sometimes that is the result of jumping head first. I have been rejected, heart-broken, sad, depressed and a million other negative emotions because I chose the riskier road. But the beauty of going through those emotions is that it gives you such strength and knowledge about yourself. It teaches you more about your deep self than just living in comfort and shallow. Always remember that reward will always follow risk. The reward may not be packaged the way you want it to, but facing fears will always have a beneficial payoff.
 
So keep this in mind when you’re making future choices. Be open to the fear. Get comfortable with the unknown. And remember that in any circumstance- good or bad- there is a lesson to be learned.
 
Ciao,
Jamiesonxo