knowing vs feeling
Here’s the thing. You’ve likely heard me say it before…
Fear isn’t real.
It’s not. It’s your nervous system trying to protect you. The threat may be real, but let’s be honest. Most of the time it’s a negative fantasy we’ve concocted in our own mind. If you have enough self-awareness, you probably know that what is causing your fear isn’t totally rooted in reality. Yet, it tears up our insides and freezes us in our tracks just the same.
You’ve got to convince your body
Knowing that your fear is irrational is the first step. Then you’ve got to convince your body that it’s not in any real danger so that it calms the heck down. Living in a state of fear is like living in a prison. You aren’t meant to live like that. What would it look like if you just let go of every fear that is holding you back from the life you dream about? How would it feel to finally be free of that weight and just freaking go for the thing?!
I’ll let you in on a secret. I’m scared all the time. I wake up scared. My biggest fear lately is my book launching in just a few weeks and instead of being totally psyched, I’m mostly distracted by the fear. I’m afraid that when people glare into the most intimate part of my life, they won’t “get” the healing perspectives that changed me and they will be totally unmoved.
I have to convince myself all day every day that I am actually okay and that what I am working so hard for is bigger than my self created fears. The sum of my fears is failure, but I choose to believe that failure is not even a possibility. I choose to believe that this was all put on my heart for a purpose and if it makes a difference for even one person, it’s worth it.
I practice these reminders by journaling, making lists, prayer, reframing negative self-talk, and when I’m tired of all the noise in my head, I turn up the music. Have you ever heard this song? Oh my heart. Go ahead, click and listen while you read the rest then put that in your fear-fighting ammo box.
Sure, we can hold some fears down enough to get by, but the big ones holding us down require the big guns – God, our maker. Knowing that we are made for a purpose that is yet to be fulfilled because we are still alive is a big freaking deal. I am a big deal. YOU are a big deal. WE ARE BIGGER THAN OUR FEARS.
The honest truth
The very best things we will accomplish in this life can only happen if we do not allow fear to dictate whether or not we rise up to the occasion.
Rise up, new girl.
