Fear is gravity,
Always telling you to take the easier path,
And always downhill.
Walk uphill,
It is the door into awe and freedom.
One of the boldest people in human history,
Nelson Mandela,
Could have been talking to you and me directly when he said,
May your choices reflect your hopes,
Not your fears.
He certainly made his choices not out of fears.
So what do people fear?
The most common fears are fear of the unknown,
Fear of failure,
Fear that something won't go to plan,
Fear of judgment,
Fear of discomfort,
Fear of public speaking,
Fear of darkness,
Fear of flying,
And even fear of success.
And that's not all,
Perhaps the biggest one is the fear of death.
People are full of fears,
It locks us in a cage,
But it's quite possible that everything great lies on the other side of fear.
So what is fear?
Fear is a deeply wired reaction to protect us against perceived threats.
The phrase perceived threats is very important,
As not everything that you fear is really dangerous if you look at it rationally.
Certain situations,
Or even a thought about such a situation,
Can ignite a chain of reactions in your brain,
And you might find yourself in a fight or flight response.
Many studies suggest that how we experience fear depends on the context we are giving to the situation.
As an example,
If you face a lion in the jungle,
It will trigger a strong reaction of fear,
But to see the same lion in a zoo cage will evoke curiosity.
This is because context defines brain reaction.
Fear is giving you a message,
And the real art is to read these messages properly and act upon them.
It might say it's too dangerous,
Or perhaps better be prepared for that next big challenge,
Or oftentimes it indicates the right direction for your personal growth.
Let's meditate on how to find your courage.
I invite you to find a comfortable space in the room.
Allow your body to take up the space.
You can sit in a chair,
Or sit on the ground with your legs crossed.
As you settle in,
Allow yourself to drop into the present moment.
Together,
Let's take a long,
Slow,
Deep breath in and gently breathe out.
And again.
And as you exhale,
Feel your mind and body relaxing.
Bring your awareness to your body sensations.
Its weight.
The movement of your chest and belly.
Allow your eyes to close if you wish to,
Or keep them open with a soft,
Focused gaze and an object in front of you.
Notice the quality of your breath.
Bring awareness to the state of your mind and your body.
Stay connected with your breath.
You can make a mental note,
Mentally saying in for every inhalation and out for every exhalation.
Now imagine your mind as a car,
And you are the driver.
You have control over this beautiful,
Sophisticated machine in whatever shape and form you see it as.
There are two main pedals there.
One is a brake that represents your fear,
And the other one is an accelerator that represents your courage.
You know you have control over both.
If you only press the brake pedal,
You will stay still in the same place and never learn and experience new places in your life.
It's ok to brake from time to time when it's really needed,
But most of the time,
You want to move on and keep pressing the acceleration to keep going and exploring life.
No need to press it to the limit,
You can start slowly to get comfortable with a little challenge.
And as you begin to get comfortable,
You build your confidence and increase your pressure on the pedal of courage.
In the next moment,
Think what is ahead of you that makes you feel fear.
What message is this fear giving you?
Is it a perceived threat,
Or a real threat?
Think for a moment,
What context can you give to this situation that would make you feel inspired,
Energized,
Or perhaps calm and still?
Don't force your thinking too much,
Just contemplate with the idea and notice what comes to mind.
Make that context vivid in your mind.
Feel confidence and stillness.
Transform the energy of fear to the energy of power and excitement.
Take a deep breath in and let the courage fill you up,
And slowly breathe out all of the fear that might still be left.
Again,
Breathe in courage,
And breathe out fear.
Feel the vibration of your body with every breath.
Feel the energy of your body with every breath.
Feel the energy of your body with every breath.
Make sure this choice serves your long-term goals.
Before we finish,
Let's take one more deep breath in and out.
Associate your mindful breathing with courage,
And remember,
You can always bring your attention to it whenever you need.
You are in control of your own fears and courage.
Keep going,
Life is full of things worth exploring.
Thanks for the effort.
