Learn Your Greatest Fear

The quickest way to learn about yourself is to find out what you're afraid of. Some people are terrified of drowning and stay as far away from pools as they can. Some people are afraid of creepy crawly things and scream very loudly when a spider comes into view. Me? I'm afraid of screwing up.

It doesn't really matter what your fear is. The reaction is usually the same. Your mind races. You start to make excuses for why you can't, why you need out. It's fight or flight. You might even notice some anger building up in to propel you to stick it out.

Fear triggers all your defense mechanisms. It's a physiological response to protect your ego, your person. But sometimes it just causes more problems then we'd like to admit.

You have to know your fears so you can learn to work within them. If you're afraid of water and your plane crashes in the ocean, you're going to need to stay calm and tread water or swim to safety. If you panic or freeze, you use your energy up too quickly or you just sink straight away.

For me, awareness is helpful. If I know I'm scared, I can allow the feeling to take place without acting on it, without it consuming me or becoming dramatic. I can remind myself that I'll be ok and wait patiently for that truth to come to pass.

Fear not, this too will pass...