Eliminating Fear and Stress

Feel the fear and do it anyway. 

You may have heard of the book “Feel The Fear And Do It Anyway” by Susan
Jeffers. Although this is not my favorite way of dealing with stress it does work and it
is a useful approach at times.  In my opinion this is the most stressful and difficult way to deal with your fears.
The idea is to consistently move beyond your own self limiting behavior.
For example let us say you are afraid of approaching people at networking events.
Your goal would be to gradually aim higher despite your fears. Here are the few approaches you can do over time
Attend a meeting with the goal of talking to just one new person.
Go to a meeting and this time initiate a conversation with three new people
without putting yourself under pressure to strike up a great conversation.

Self Talk and Stress

Self-talk refers to the dialogue that goes on inside your head when faced with conflict or life challenges or even simple day-to-day concerns. This aspect of yourself has a running commentary about everything you do. It never lets anything go by with out some comment, remark or evaluation.
Becoming aware of this process is the first step in taking charge of this part of yourself that can create a lot of unnecessary stress.

You’ll recognize these thoughts because you have heard them all your life; I’m not smart enough, something is wrong, I can’t do it, I never finish anything, this is too hard, change takes too long, etc. In effect you don’t need those people to tell you what to do anymore, they are living inside your own head!!!

How to make a change
First…awareness. You must become aware of the inner dialogue. Begin to notice when it shows up, what it is telling you.  Pay attention to what you thinkSee if you can start to recognize the repetitive nature of the thoughts.

Second…you don’t HAVE to react to the thoughts your mind presents you. It is a habit you can break with awareness. The moment you notice that it is just a THOUGHT and not a COMMAND you have a choice. You are in touch with your “observing self”. That gap or moment of awareness allows you to notice the thought and CHOOSE to do what you have always done or CHOOSE to do something different.