Overcome your fears step by step

We live in a world that salutes the strong and the brave which is fortunate as it makes living in denial of the things that truly terrify us so much simpler. Most of us just want to ignore and suppress our fears.

The trouble with that is at some point, life may just throw you a curved ball where you are suddenly thrown in the deep end of dealing with something that really scares you to the horrifying point of not being able to move.

So first and foremost, let’s celebrate the fact that you are open to overcoming your fears and even reading this article.

The big thing to remember no matter what your fear is, is that you are not alone. Thousands of people have the same fear as you do. How do we know? Because they have given voice to their fears through online communities such as ours, and have shared steps they have taken to manage what can sometimes be overwhelming terrors.

Here are some of the best tips we have found:

1. Name your fear and analyse it: What are you afraid of? Take a few quiet moments to think about it.

2. Write it down: Write down your fear, the extent of it. Write down the first time you experienced it. Write down the history of your fear, what triggers it, did it stem from childhood or begin more recently? How does it affect you emotionally and physically? Start keeping a journal of your progress in understanding and tackling it.

3. Imagine overcoming that fear. Write down what overcoming that fear would mean, how it would make you would feel, what you imagine your world would look like after it was no longer an issue. Include the small milestones in surpassing that fear you would expect to achieve on the way. Break down overcoming that fear into small, manageable steps.

4. Start taking those steps one at a time.

5. Focus on where you want to go to rather than be distracted by what could stop you from getting there or the obstacles that may lie before you. Where the mind leads, the body can follow. What you focus on expands and dominates your reality.

6. Celebrate the success of each and every one of those milestones.

Be gentle on yourself, and have the courage to continue undermining your fears and make your life a little richer and fuller as a result.