All of us have a fundamental, built-in safety system, called FEAR. It’s there to protect us against perceived threats and to keep us safe. Very useful in ancient history when we were surrounded by dangers from sable-toothed tigers and enemy tribes. Being kicked out of our tribe often meant we would not survive. FEAR was REAL.
Today our FEARS still FEEL real, as our biology has not caught up with our new reality yet. But most of our fears have nothing to do with our lives being in danger.
Our current fears are thoughts about future events that haven’t even happened yet:
“What happens if I change my career and give up what I have now?”
“What if I fail when I take on this new project?”
“I’m afraid to speak out and say what I really think.”
“What will other people say when I …..?”
It’s our little voice telling us: “Don’t do this”, “Be careful what you say” “You’re not good enough”, “You’re not cut out for this”, “You’re different and people will think you’re crazy”, “You will never make it”.
Those are not REAL fears. It’s self-sabotage. Most of the things we worry about are not life and death situations. They are limiting beliefs that come from that built-in protection system. A system that we as adults no longer need because what it tries to protect us from are not REAL dangers, although you may experience them that way.
Instead of believing the voices and reacting to them by hiding, avoiding, ignoring, or running away, look at your beliefs and challenge them – head-on!
Ask yourself:
“What am I trying to protect here?”
“What if my FEAR was happening FOR me?”
“What would I do if I’d be more COURAGEOUS than AFRAID?”
“What would I do if I was FEARLESS?”
Explore. Challenge. Listen to the desire underneath that fear. Take action. You won’t die.
Let’s Lead!
Liesbeth
