Fear

Fear–whether it be a fear of spiders, a fear of heights or a fear of losing the ones you love–we all have it. Fear is a good thing, it’s part of being a human and it keeps us safe, but sometimes it can get in our way. If you were to have asked me not long ago what my greatest fear was, I would have told you that I feared not being good enough. I was afraid that I wouldn’t do enough at school, wouldn’t get the ATAR I need, wouldn’t get into the uni I want to and wouldn’t be able to do all the good I want to do.

I don’t have that fear any more, I’ve completely overcome it. Some people might fear connecting with people, and isolate themselves. Some people might fear failure, and so they never try. We need to keep in our minds, that the only reason we have fear is to protect us. When men went out hunting and came to a giant drop-off, it was fear that kept them from walking right off. But when our fears aren’t protecting us, but instead limiting us in what we can do, it’s then that we need to take a good hard look at them.

The human mind is incredible. The amount of things that it can deal with is absolutely astonishing. People do have the power to overcome their fears. In fact, people have the power to do almost anything they set their minds on, that’s one of the most amazing things about us. It’s the reason we’re living longer than ever and have stepped foot on the moon.

Never has man just settled for what its body could allow us to do. When we wanted to travel around the world in hours, but our body would only let us walk, we built planes. When we wanted to lift up those big boxes but they were just too heavy, we built forklifts. Where our body stops, our mind and imagination excels.

In the same way, you shouldn’t let your body or sub-conscious stop you, or limit your living. Use that remarkably powerful super-computer you have sitting inside your skull. Don’t settle with what you’re stuck with right now, work for more.

Whether it be a fear of putting yourself out there, or talking to new people, or even wearing those nice pink shoes you recently bought, if you know it’s holding you back, if you know it’s limiting your growth as a person – kick it to the kerb.

You are amazing, and like all those who have come before you, you have remarkable potential. Don’t be afraid to use the tools you were blessed with to grow and experience. Fear is good, yes. But don’t ever let it, or anything else, stop you from reaching your full potential.

Each time we face our fear, we gain strength, courage, and confidence in the doing.

Jason O’Neil