Last update: February 19, 2017
Fear is a natural sensation that arises in us to warn us of dangerous situations, generally when we find ourselves facing what is unknown to us. Unfortunately, however, very often this natural feeling disrupts and takes possession of our life. All this can lead us to become insecure people, canceling us out and paralyzing us almost completely.
The best thing is to learn to recognize the value of fear in order to prevent it from taking control over our life. No one is safe from its destructive power, but it is still possible to identify it and reduce its negative impact. It is good to do it in time, before it is too late.
A society like ours obliges us to always be in competition with others. We are faced with a constant need for success, and whoever fails to achieve it is destined to be a failure, excluded from the glorious group of people who have arrived where they wanted to go.
"Those who are afraid only hear noises"
–Sofocle–
In circumstances like these, the fear of failure can prevent us from taking a single step. It blocks us to the point that we don't even have the strength to try. And when we hear phrases such as "success rewards only those who risk", we suffer a lot because we know that it is fear that prevents us from taking risks. In those moments, we forget that the ability to achieve our goals is within our reach, always.
The fear of not being recognized
Always act in the hope that your work will be recognized, that they will notice you. But the fear of being rejected leads you to relentlessly retreat, to the point that your self-esteem reaches minimal levels. Social approval is like a ghost pursuing you, a nightmare that accompanies you every night.
Nothing seems to work in your favor. You have convinced yourself that you were born under an evil star and that you are destined to suffer for the rest of your life. You always have the impression that others are pointing the finger at you, questioning your work, criticizing you to the point of moving away. Try as you might, you can't even build relationships based on true trust. You do not realize that, in reality, it is you who push others away.
You use social networks to compare yourself with others, without understanding how they can be happy and you cannot. Everyone smiles in the photos, they publish their numerous triumphs, their conquests, show off their splendid life on the bulletin board. You have never wondered if everything you read is true.
Comparing ourselves to others prevents us from focusing on our challenges. As human beings, we all have the same possibilities, and although each of us is a universe unto itself, we live in a community, and for this we should learn to accept ourselves exactly for who we are.
The fear of leaving one's comfort zone
The comfort zone is a state of mind that prevents us from going further. This means that we get used to what we do to the point that we are terrified of losing it. We fail to see change as an opportunity: on the contrary, those who are assailed by fear believe that change means leaving one's state of well-being. In the long run, however, it is precisely that presumed well-being that limits us.
You may not be happy with your job, yet you know that the unemployment rate is constantly rising and you feel that you cannot afford the risk of being adrift. Even if your salary is low, they exploit you, you have no chance for a career and, what's more, you don't find a sense of stability, you don't have the courage to change. You don't even realize that your life is dominated by fear.
You ignore that need to turn that, in reality, you know is necessary, and you indulge in your routine for fear of uncertainty. You deny yourself the possibility of a change that will surely benefit you just because the idea of ​​stepping out of the comfort zone terrifies you. By doing so, you are also denying yourself the opportunity to improve. Total resistance to change indicates that fear dominates your life.
We were taught that dreaming is reserved for idealists. Many brag that giving up dreams is an act of maturity. In reality, this conformist philosophy is promoted only by those who fear mistakes and failures. They don't realize that perhaps one of the biggest failures in life is giving up a better life, just out of fear.
