The Fear Factor

Many of us contain within us many fears, some of which we keep silent while others we cannot help but talk about or show to others. Either way we realize that there is something in control and it’s not ourselves. It gets a bit disconcerting knowing that something else is controlling us. I guess the easiest term that we recognize is being out of control. The words are very revealing in the fact that the locus of our control is outside our being.

How many of you out there love to be controlled? My guess is not many. It is built into our genetics to be free. Freedom from fear is a road all of us must travel. If we choose not to our choices become limited and our sense of self worth diminishes. Fear is nothing more than worrying about many possible future outcomes which we define as negative. First off, I know that your mind just went, “What the heck? There are negative things that happen.” I quickly answer that we define it. William Shakespeare said, “Nothing is good nor bad, lest we make it so.” So the great Willy S knew it then.

Some of our most challenging situations have been the most definining. I believe that the tougher the situation, the better we will be on the other end, if we choose. Years ago, I remember reading an article about how swords were made. The article stated that the higher the heat and fire for the sword, the stronger the sword would be. I see people like swords; we are forged by our challenges. These challenge test our inner metle, or metal if you want to keep it in the sword metaphor. We need to bless our situations whatever they are. No matter how bad it seems, someone else has got it worse. Fear is an interesting monster that can be tamed. Notice that I didn’t say that it could be killed, banished, or suffocated (you might have some better words for this).

We need fear to protect us. That’s how we’ve survived. I can’t imagine being confident when I’m being attacked. Fear is a gift that helps us survive. However, fear in competition needs to be tamed because it can take us out of the game. In the book The Breakout Principle, it speaks about how fear, when used properly, can cause the highest of peak performances. Controlled fear allows our bodies to release chemicals that will bring about top laser-like focused performances. We need to use the fear in factoring our equation of success.

Turn your ear towards fear for survival; but face it and you can erase it. Mark Twain once said, “I’ve had a million problems, most of which never happened.” We need to listen to this great spokesperson. One definition a person gave me in regards to fear is “the anticipation of pain.” So if this definition holds true, then we are feeling the posibility of pain way before it can even possibly happen. Pain is one thing, but feeling the possiblity of it before doesn’t make sense. All we can do is hope for the best, prepare ourselves for the worst and live our lives fully in between.

The fact is that we need courage, not lack of fear. Your courage will carry you through. Use fear when it’s there to protect you mortally, but tell it to stuff it when it’s getting in the way of your dreams.

Until then…Peak into you future,
Coach Jim Guerci