Six Mindsets to Conquer Fear
Sometimes, fear seizes you. Other times, it simply tugs at your sleeve.
I’ve known a number of people who adopted what they found to be successful strategies for countering fear.
A few of them may overlap. Not everyone uses the same approach every time, but here are time-tested techniques:
1. Optimism. Flashback to the novel David Copperfield and one of the most memorable characters ever created by Charles Dickens. Wilkins Micawber, whose habits of overspending frequently kept him in danger of the Poor House, optimistically favored the “Something will turn up” method. Although risky, its wide popularity is due to the fact that often - almost miraculously - something does turn up. Never despair, Copperfield.
2. Indifference. These practitioners know that the party that cares least, controls and that fear thrives on a lack of control. They remove fear’s oxygen. Not Caring produces Control, and Control produces Lack of Fear.
Many of us have seen the wisdom in this attitude when we look back at situations that once sparked grave concern and wonder, “What was I worrying about?”
3. Going on the Offense. This technique turns fear on its head and devotes energy to making the aggressors worry. They want to scare us? We’ll teach those weasels the meaning of fear!
[”Wormer? He’s a dead man!” - John Belushi, Animal House]
4. Distraction. Rather than stewing over concerns that cannot be controlled, these fear-fighters simply shift their attention elsewhere. I recall a friend of mine in law school who, while the rest of us worried about upcoming exams, would go off and fly model airplanes. Each year, he went to Mardi Gras.
He knew something that the rest of us missed. Insight often arrives when you take a walk, a swim, or some other activity completely unrelated to your fears.
5. Focusing on the Immediate. This is the old “Be courageous one minute longer” technique. You reduce your fears by breaking them into small pieces. You focus on the next ten seconds and then the next ten. You don’t let your thoughts get too far ahead. You curb your imagination.
6. Setting Aside Perfection. Believing that you must be perfect breeds tension and fear. In most cases, perfection is neither necessary nor expected. Instead, aim for a reasonable solution. The person who was on the ground and had to make a decision in a time-sensitive scenario with limited information is rightly given a lot of leeway. Let the critics second-guess! They weren’t there.
Which approach is best? The answer is easy. Whichever one works.