Facing The Fearsome Facts, by Phillip Van Hooser, CSP

Whether your fears are overt, covert or a combination of the two, there is no question that they deserve attention. Fears can be defeating or defeated. It`s our choice. To ignore them or to pretend that they simply do not exist, is the equivalent of an ostrich placing her head in the sand and believing that she is hidden. To overcome our fears, we must face the fearsome facts about those fears. Consider these five.

1. EVERYONE HAS FEARS. Everyone! Fear is not reserved for the weak or faint of heart. In fact, psychologists tell us that every healthy, human child possesses two instinctive fears from the moment of birth: the fear of falling and the fear of loud noises. Every other fear that humans must contend with in life is created by individual experiences and mental programming.

2. UNFAMILIAR EXPERIENCES ARE BREEDING GROUNDS FOR NEW FEARS. People talk about being "afraid of change," as if change needs to be avoided at all costs. That`s foolishness. Change is a constant in all our lives. It provides the variety and creative spark for life itself. I contend that people don`t fear change, they fear the unknowns associated with change. That which is unknown, which is most unfamiliar, predictably causes us the greatest concerns and fears.

3. UNSUCCESSFUL EXPERIENCES COMPOUND OUR FEARS. This is probably true for most people. However, it need not be. Unfortunately, too many of us are cursed with 20/20 hindsight, instead of 20/20 foresight. We spend too much time dwelling on what went wrong, rather than determining what we can learn from these unsuccessful situations. I believe that to learn to do something right, we must first learn to do it wrong. If we have never failed, how can we fully appreciate our successes? 4. TO GROW, WE MUST CONFRONT OUR FEARS. Each of us has heard that once thrown from a horse, the best immediate course of action is to climb right back on. But, it`s much easier to speak the words than to put our foot in the stirrup. Before we physically act, we must prepare ourselves mentally for the action. I have adopted a mental philosophy that works well for me. If it scares me professionally, I`ll do it! Most of what I learn that is of real value, happens while I am outside of my comfort zones. Therefore, it is essential that I create situations in which I can confront my fears, be they real or imagined.

5. CONFIDENCE COMES FROM SUCCESSFULLY OVERCOMING OUR FEARS. As I said before, I believe that most of the fears and obstacles we face in life are self-imposed. We create them in our minds and then act on them as if they are real. Yet, when we are able to overcome even one of these self-manufactured fears, the energy that grows naturally within us allows each of us the opportunity to forge ahead with confidence.

The end result? We continue our leadership journey with a heightened resolve to be the best we can be--without fear!

©Copyright Phillip Van Hooser, CSP - All Rights Reserved.