10 Reasons It’s Awesome You’re Terrified

In our recent Get Up Girl Advanced Group we encouraged everyone to take actions that stretch them beyond their comfort zones. In addition to assisting them in accomplishing their goals, another common by-product of taking risks is fear. Here is a terrific article by new blog contributor and freelance writer, Lori Deschene that takes a positive look at fear and it’s blessings.

10 Reasons It’s Awesome You’re Terrified

I am terrified of heights—kind of. Having entered the world one year after a girly-girl sister, I decided at a young age to be the tough one. To play with dinosaurs, fight my tears when I scraped my knee, and climb tall trees with the best of the neighborhood boys. The only problem was I was too scared to climb down. Thankfully, those neighborhood boys were accommodating (as they were 10 years later when I decided being girly was more fun—but that’s beside the point). With this in mind, perhaps you can appreciate how difficult it was for me to jump out of a plane from 10,000 feet.

But I did it. I forgot about everything I thought could go wrong, focused on the benefits of going through with it, took it one step at a time, and jumped. In hindsight, I now realize fear is absolutely awesome. Here’s why:

10. It sometimes shields you from harm. Fear is an intuitive survival mechanism and there are many times when you really should heed its message. If you walk into your building and sense there’s someone in the shadows, your fear and the action it inspires just may save your life. (Incidentally, I felt this same survival instinct when I learned about skydiving—but research convinced me the risk was minimal).

9. Fear pushes you to face your internal issues. Let’s say you’re scared of pursuing your dream job. You can either give in to that fear, or question where it comes from so you can conquer it. If you’re scared of failing, ask yourself why. Did your upbringing instill in you that failure is unacceptable? If you challenge your issues and subconscious beliefs now it will be much easier to reach goals you set in the future.

8. You have a chance to be brave. I have never in my life felt as proud of myself as I did when I jumped out of that plane. Whatever you’re afraid of, appreciate it. It invites you to be bold and daring, which may inspire other people to do the same. Now that’s a rush!

7. The experience teaches you to act in spite of your feelings. We all have feelings; it’s part of being human. Some people hide behind them, allowing fear, anger, and pride to dominate their lives. Some repress them and experience a lot of pain as a result. Others identify them and act anyways. That’s mindfulness: acknowledging you feel scared, deciding it’s not a permanent state, and then making a choice in spite of it.

6. You can prove to yourself what you’re made of. We all have fears—every last one of us. Some people worry so much about the worst case scenario that they avoid risk at all cost, feeling trapped and unhappy. Others push through it, and either reach their dreams or hold the satisfaction of knowing they gave it their best shot. You decide: what are you made of?

5. It gives you the chance to identify your mental chatter as just that—chatter. Our internal monologues rarely stop going; and they often talk us out of doing things we want to do. When that little voice goes into overdrive, you have two choices: let it drive you insane, or find a way to silence it. Once you learn to tune out your inner evaluator—the voice that analyzes life as it happens—it will be far easier to be present and peaceful.

4. Your friends have the chance to help you be your best. I told 8,800 people on Twitter I planned to go skydiving—and then three hours beforehand told them I was considering backing out. I received countless @replies from people telling me they’d done it before and that I’d love the experience. If not for all the external support, I might not have gone through with it. (Thank you so much Twitter friends!)

3. You can practice skills that will help you later in life. The best way to handle fear is also a great way to handle challenges: take it step by step. The morning before I jumped, I decided all I had to do was get in the car at 12:15. After that, all I had to do was get in the harness. And then board the plane and so on. Whether you’re starting a new business or trying to lose 50 pounds, this approach makes a lot of sense: take it one step at a time.

2. It helps you overcome catastrophic thinking. Most of the time when you shun something you’re scared of it’s because of “what if” thinking. I spent at least an hour wondering: What if my parachute doesn’t open? What if I fall out of my harness? What if I land in the highway and die a tragic death as road-kill? Then I remembered this: most of the things we worry about never happen. So why exhaust my energy worrying?

1. Overcoming fear teaches you to accept uncertainty. Fear and worry are attempts to control the future—to avoid situations and feelings you’ve decided are undesirable. But really, does it ever work? Does clinging to fear guarantee your future will unfold exactly as you want it? No! Once you release the fear about the future, you’re free to focus on the present—which, by the way, is when life happens.

Whatever it is you’re scared of, you can overcome it and become stronger in the process. You just have to stay focused on the benefits of feeling the fear and pushing through it. “

Don’t be afraid to go out on a limb. That’s where the fruit is.” -H. Jackson Browne

You heard my story, now tell me yours! What fears are on your radar right now—and how are you pushing through them?

Lori Deschene lives in San Mateo, CA where she works as a freelance writer. Visit seeinggood.com, her blog about realistic positive thinking, and follow her on Twitter @BeMeaningful.

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