Use fear to your advantage

                      By Bayo Ogunmupe

    Every human being has fears, for fear tends to evolve and change over time. A child might be afraid of the dark while youngsters are afraid of embarrassment during speech making. Newborns are afraid of loud noises. All fears are learned. What have you learned to be afraid of? Losing your life, illness, discomfort cause you fear. If it is only your ego taking, you will know fear isn't in your best interest. That is the fear that keeps you  tied to your comfort zone.

    Thus, you must reframe your situation. That you are physically uncomfortable should not control your thoughts and actions. When you are agitated by anxiety, take it as a sign that a lucky break is in the offing. Step out of your comfort zone and take advantage of the opportunity. Use fear to your advantage for it cannot be avoided. Embrace fear by making a list of your fears. It might be the fear of success or the fear of being isolated. By understanding the essence of your fears, you are able to conquer them.

    By addressing the core of your fears you are able to eliminate them. Use fear to propel you forward. Champions have been those able to conquer their fears successfully. Conquering one fear makes you more capable. The next fear will even be easier to manage. The confidence gained through conquering your fears will spread all over every area of your life. Recognize that fear is self induced. It is only your perception of events that creates your fear. Even then, fear is just a feeling; even with physical symptoms, it is a mere feeling. Fear is just a guess. When you realize that fact, you will be able to conquer the fear.

    Use fear to enhance your personal and mental discipline. Discipline is the ability to do things you don't feel like doing. You don't need discipline to do things  you enjoy. Fear gives you the opportunity to learn about yourself. It should enable you to examine your belief system, your religion and freedom of thought. The secret of happiness is freedom. And the secret of freedom is courage. Use courage to conquer fear. The first freedom is bravery, without bravery no real benefit can ever come from any task we undertake. Conscience is the root of all true courage.

      To conquer fear and gain the freedom to be happy in life, you must cultivate courage and bravery. One, promise yourself not to hold your past, your previous mistakes against yourself. Take the past as a lesson learned. Your experience helps you to grow and make better choices today. Two, live a life that feels right to you; not one that looks right to everyone else. Follow the path of your personal happiness. To gain something great, you have to let go of something else; which could be a relationship that wants to keep you at their level.

      Three, give up relationships that limits you. People come into your life simply to teach you something. They are not meant to live with you for ever. Four, never allow any situation to permanently steal your joy. Always reflect on things that have lasting meaning in your life. And then rejoice about how far you have come in achieving your set goals. Rough situations build strong people. Finally, keep stretching yourself beyond your  comfort zone. Every great success endured many stresses and struggles before becoming celebrated as champions. Struggles make you stronger and smarter. The more time you spend grappling with problems, the faster you learn what it takes to be a winner.