5 Effective Ways To Overcome Fear
We all experience fear one way or the other but the difference between each of us is in how we are able to overcome this fear. An unhandled fear brings torment which is why I would be showing you 5 effective ways to overcome fear.
Fear is a powerful human emotion and we experience it whenever we are threatened. As we experience this emotion, the likely response to it is either flight or fight. This response helps to prepare us on how to effectively deal with it in our environment.
Our human mind cannot differentiate between our imagination and reality. It projects our imagination as our current experience and our response is either to flee from it or face it.
Daniel Kahneman says that “we all as human beings fear loss way more than we appreciate gain and we project fear about two to seven times more than it is real”. Which is why the anticipation of an event is more powerful than the event itself.
“Men are not afraid of things, but of how they view them” -Epictetus
We quickly adapt to positives or negatives in our lives faster than we think we will. This is explained in a phenomenon called Hedonic adaptation.
Here are 5 ways to effectively overcome your fears.
1. Identify it.
Fear is a type of emotion and the very first step in dealing with an emotion is knowing what it is. Are you afraid? Why are you afraid?
“A problem well stated is a problem half solved” – Charles Kettering
2. Interpret it.
How are you interpreting the fear you are currently experiencing?
A guy called Joseph (in the bible) was sold to slavery by his brothers and was later put in prison even after he had a fantastic dream of how he was going to liberate his family.
He chose to explain it that God took him through that process of hard time to prepare him for his greater assignment, which appears true.
“Nothing in life has any meaning except the meaning you give it” – Anthony Robbins
3. Start with the small things.
Sometimes, we cringe at the volume of work that we have to do to achieve our goals. It can be overwhelming.
Take out time to deconstruct the big goals into small fractions that fit into your daily and weekly activities. That way, the work won’t be looking too big for you to handle.
The faster you take action, the better the view you have about what will work for you and what won’t. “feel the fear and do it anyway” – Susan Jeffers
4. Journal it.
The benefit of journaling cannot be overemphasized. Research shows that one of the tools to manage anxiety is journaling. Write your worries down, detail the moment, list your fears, re-read what you have written and let those thoughts drive you to action. “Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart” – William Wordsworth
5. Ask God for help and others too.
Take counsel from the word of God and in prayers as God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, of love, and of a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7).
Someone says “you are as sick as your secrets”. Get comfortable getting support and feedback from people. It is okay to have God and a therapist too. Ask for help!
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Challenges comes with fears. Sometimes identifying a challenges breeds more fear. I think the First step is working on Your mentality or mindset. Build yourself to see facts in every fear.
Secondly, Starting with the small Things is not always the case. When facing Your Daily task or challenges or fears, it’s better you tackle the bigger ones First while you are still fresh with energy and vigor.
Above all, this is a great piece Gracy. I learnt quite a lot.
Hi Isaac, I appreciate your points of view.
Like I mentioned in the post, all of us have fears. It could be the fear of taking on a new role at work or tendering a resignation letter, or even wanting to get married and the list goes on. The difference in us is in how we are able to manage and ultimately overcome the fear.
Understanding this, means there’s a level of right mindset that you have else, you’d be drowned in your fears. To also rightly interpret that fear, you’d need a right mindset too.
As for the approach of fear, just like a baby learns to walk by first moving their buttocks, then crawling before they begin to walk, that how fears should be handled. As they move and crawl and succeed at it, they are encouraged to move to the next step. It’s a gradual process when you are trying to overcome a seeming challenge.
Thank you for your contribution.