Be Transformed with The Catalyst: These Tips Will Help You Overcome Fear

Fear is an unpleasant and uncomfortable feeling mostly triggered by the acknowledgement of real or imagined danger. Fear often takes over our lives, gets the best of us, and influences a lot of our decisions. Sometimes, it is a fear of making the same mistakes from your past, the fear of failure, the fear of success, the fear of what people would say, the fear of the unknown, or even the fear of fear itself. 

Even though we were born with only two innate fears – the fear of falling and the fear of loud sounds, we have all learned and developed the fear of many things at different times in our lives. In my book, The Morning Commander, I explain how fear can be a major stumbling block that holds us back from being all we can be, and truly successful.

Don’t give fear the power to hold you back, or stop you from creating the future of your dreams, because fear is only as deep as the mind allows. Here are my top 4 hacks to overcoming fear:

Separate your reality from assumptions

Be present in the moment. Ask yourself the following questions:

• What is really going on with me right now?
• Am I focused on the past, present, or future right now?
• What do I have control over right now?
• Can I change the past?
• What can I learn from the past that will help me grow?
• Can I influence the future without making the right decision at this moment?
• What decision(s) must I make now to influence my future? 

Don’t make assumptions about your life, instead, be realistic, act on your findings.  

Identify your trigger(s) 

Ask yourself the following questions:

•  Why am I really afraid?
•  What exactly happened?
•  What triggered the fear – situations, people?
•  What am I really afraid of?
•  Am I really afraid of what I think I’m afraid of?

Be aware of what actually triggers your fear. Identify this trigger and learn how best to overcome it.

Know where the fear is specifically located in your body 

A lot of times, fear affects each of us in different ways: emotionally, psychologically, and physically. To overcome fear, you must become aware of how it affects you. For example, even though fear is emotional and psychological, it often presents itself physically. So you find that in the moments when you’re afraid, you grind your teeth, clench your fist, and you feel very tense. What you can do is, whenever you feel this way, try to stop yourself from grinding your teeth, free your jaw, flex your fingers, relax your neck and back muscles by adjusting your poise. Do some stretches and focus on your breathing to stay calm.

Understand that your mind and body are one and the same system, you can access and change your mind by altering your body.

“To overcome fear, here’s all you have to do: realise the fear is there, and do the action you fear anyway” — Peter McWilliams.

Practice Gratitude Daily  

During difficult times, gratitude is more important than ever. Research shows that gratitude can help us cope with traumatic and fearful events, regulate negative emotions, improve our well-being and transform our lives. To benefit from the power of gratitude, you have to build your gratitude muscles through practice. 

“Do the thing you fear to do and keep on doing it, that is the quickest and surest way ever yet discovered to conquer fear” — Dale Carnegie.

Develop the habit of journaling. Create a gratitude list and write at least 12 things you are thankful for in your life each day. 

Gratitude journaling is not about how big or small your wins are, it is simply being grateful for everything in your life. Fear dwells on the negative, the act of gratitude will help you overturn and overcome fear, and shift your mind from negativity into positivity.