Part of common humanity is knowing that we all experience fears throughout our lives - and some are more challenging to overcome than others.
But fear is also a powerful signal to better understand ourselves, and these prompts are meant to be done in order to help us see, understand and acknowledge what our fears can tell us about who we are.
- Brainstorm. List out or free write on what you are afraid of, and what each fear prevents you from doing (can be positive or negative). Is there one that is biggest or a common theme that emerges?
- Think Back. For the biggest fear, try to think back of its origin - where did it come from? Did it build from a few places, people or experiences? What reinforced it?
- What’s the impact? What in your life right now triggers this fear? And when it is triggered, how do you respond both in your mind and your physical self? Do you notice if it puts you into fight, flight or freeze?
- Fear is your mind’s way of protecting yourself from harm. Do you think your biggest fear is still/actually serving you?
- Get Curious. We approach everything in our lives with open curiosity and love, or with fear and resistance. Consider approaching your fear with loving curiosity. Write a loving letter to your fear and see if it can cooperate with you to transform.