Giving your fears the boot is a skill and a practice. Your fears have most likely have been with you for a long time, but they DO NOT have to control your life.

Here are 7 solutions to help you confront and overcome your fears…

1. WRITE A LETTER TO YOURSELF FROM YOUR FEAR

Acknowledge your fear. Give it a voice. By consciously allowing your fear to be heard, you’ll understand it’s “job”. Your fear may have served you in the past—protected you from failing, kept you from embarrassment, saved you from pain, etc. Now, your fear may be holding you back. When you acknowledge your fear and understand where it’s coming from, you can decide if your fear is serving you, or if it’s time to let it go.

Example:
Dear Devon,
As your fear, I’m holding you back to protect you from potential rejection. I’m keeping you safe from feeling rejected like you felt 14 years ago, when you told Will you loved him and he broke up with you.

“If you try to get rid of fear without knowing its meaning, it will grow stronger and return.” – Deepak Chopra

2. TAKE SMALL STEPS EVERY DAY

Instead of letting fear paralyze you from taking action, take advantage of the enormous energy it holds within it. Channel your fear into action by taking small courageous steps each day; make the call, write the email, sign up for the class, speak up in the group, or the boardroom. Each time you take a small action in spite of fear, you build self-confidence which is the #1 key to overcoming fear.

“Do one thing every day that scares you.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

3. UNDERSTAND THAT PERFECTION ONLY EXISTS IN THE MIND

Being perfect is an illusion sold to us by magazines, commercials, and social media—we’re influenced by the opinions of others of who we think we should be. Give yourself permission to BE YOU! Allow yourself to make mistakes, understanding that every mistake is a lesson learned. Fear of making mistakes is ultimately fear of making progress. You will make mistakes…we all do. EMBRACE IT! Set yourself free from the illusion of being “perfect”. Making mistakes is the fastest way to learn, grow, and achieve your dreams.

“The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one.” – Elbert Hubbard

4. MOVE YOUR BODY

Fear creates stale energy in your body, which generates tension and stress. Physical activity keeps your energy flowing and dissipates negative thoughts. When your energy flows, your fears decrease. Physical activity makes you feel more confident by achieving tangible goals. Choose an activity that gets you out of your head and gets your heart rate going, such as jogging, power walking, dancing, biking, or yoga.

“Movement is a medicine for creating change in a person’s physical, emotional, and mental states.” – Carol Welch

5. MEDITATE

When you meditate, you quiet the monkey chatter of your mind which can be filled with habitual fear-based thoughts. Meditation connects you to your intuition, which is your internal GPS. Meditation teaches you to live in the present moment, and release fear and worry about the past or the future. For a simple guide on How to Meditate, CLICK HERE.

“A quiet mind is able to hear intuition over fear.” – Yvan Byeajee

6. SHARE YOUR FEARS

When you share your fears aloud, it diffuses the debilitating grip they have on you. Talk to a trusted friend, partner, life coach or counselor about your deepest fears. Notice how it feels to share your fears aloud, bringing them out of the dark and into the light. By exposing your fears, they lose their power.

“We should never let our fears hold us back from pursuing our hopes.” – John F. Kennedy

7. VISUALIZE THE BEST POSSIBLE OUTCOME

Your fear tends to imagine the worst possible outcome, which then becomes your new belief of what will happen. Instead, flip the script! Visualize the best possible outcome of what you fear. If you fear public speaking, imagine yourself receiving a standing ovation. If you fear starting a business, visualize yourself earning a living doing what you love. Your body doesn’t know the difference between what’s real and what’s imagined. By consistently visualizing your ideal outcome, you embody it.

“Visualizing a positive outcome will allow you to grow in confidence of the situation because you can believe that things will go well.” – Ryan McLean

Life is NOT about being fearless. It’s about being courageous—acknowledging the presence of your fears, and persevering in spite of them.

By reading this, you’re already on the trail to overcoming your fears. Be patient. Have faith. Trust yourself. And know that you are courageous.

I’d love to hear from you…which solution will you apply to give your fears the boot? Share in the comments below!

Giddy up,

Devon

BONUS! Click here to download and print out 7 Solutions to Overcoming Your Fears, to keep on your desk as a daily reminder.