Written by: Jane Christine, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Do you see the positive intention behind your fear? Fear is a healthy, natural, and can be a resourceful state to experience. So, how do we transform our fear to see it in a positive light? We make friends with it. We take the time and patience to understand what the underlying intention for this emotion is.
Collectively, when we have more information, we can feel safer, make better decisions, and elevate our understanding. This can also be applied to our emotions, as when we have more information and understanding of why we feel as we do, our ability to comprehend the situation heightens.
Your fear doesn’t know the difference between physical danger and emotional comfortability
For example, if there is a thunderstorm outside at night and the electricity is cut, all the lights go out, and you are home by yourself – do you have a sense of fear or at the very least, your senses are heightened, and you are wary of danger. Why do you think you feel like this? Because you have lost the ability to see clearly and look out for your own safety – fear acts as a protector and kicks in our survival instincts. So, what about when you are not in imminent danger? The fear arises when you’re about to go into a job interview. This is a different kind of fear, but the physiological sensation feels the same.
Let’s think about if you didn’t want this job, would you have fear going into the interview? I would probably think not. You see, when you aren’t invested in the outcome, your care factor is low, and therefore the chances of fear arising would also be low. In this scenario, I believe fear is highlighting your care and the importance of this job interview – the outcome and impact that would have on your life.
Fear can be your friend if you know how to embrace and understand her
Like all emotions, they serve a purpose for our safety and protection. However, due to our past experiences and traumas, we can misunderstand how to interpret them. You may start to befriend all of your emotions, even those that don’t feel the greatest, by knowing that they all have positive intentions.
When you believe this and understand that each action and emotion is trying to help and protect you, you may be able to disengage your emotional wall and explore where this feeling is coming from. Taking a step back, going to a safe place where you can take deep breaths and open yourself up to discover where the fear or anxiety is coming from.
Find your safety zone
Identify a physical place in your life where you can be safe, uninterrupted, quiet, and calm. Once you know you have this location at your disposal, you’ll be able to come to it whenever you need respite or a place to process your emotions. Deep exploration is hard work. It takes dedication and can sometimes be difficult. However, if you allow yourself to just be silent and still in a safe place, your mind will offer the answers you seek. You just have to be willing to listen.
Fear can show up in your life when you are invested in the outcome of your goal, when you really care about something or someone, when you doubt your abilities. The positive intention here could be to show you how important this issue is. If that is true for you, then you can use this fear to your advantage. You can tap into your resources and skillset and adapt as you need to to become ready and prepared for the outcome.
You can leverage your fear to excel in your evolution
All of your feelings are giving you subconscious messages. It’s up to us to befriend them and get to know their language. How we read and interpret our feelings can elevate our experience in life. Think of your feelings as a message board – they are conveying ideas to you, but it’s up to you to be able to decipher what they mean and symbolize to you and your situation.
Often people distract themselves when they start to feel an emotion that doesn’t make them feel good, but that means they are not listening to the message. Instead, they are avoiding what’s trying to be communicated. Your emotions are your friends, and they tell you what you cannot see. Fear highlights what’s important to you so you can take action accordingly. Befriend your feelings and understand their positive intentions.
Jane Christine, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Jane Christine is a certified Life Coach, NLP Master Practitioner, and author. Originally from Australia working in the corporate world until she questioned her life's purpose. Jane believed there had to be more to life, so she sold everything she owned and set off for a nomadic lifestyle traveling around the world searching for answers and a place to call home, which she finally found in Spain. Her search and transformation took her to over 37 countries. Life experiences and her own personal growth guided her to become a certified Life Coach. Her travels inspired her quest to learn about the world around us and why we do what we do. Since 2012, Jane Christine has been studying how our pasts shape us, the effects of societal standards, and the impact of values. With Neuro-Linguistics Programming techniques and through the power of transformation, learn how to; bridge the gap, define self-worth, set tangible goals, find comfort through change, and how 1% micro-changes can alter lives. Jane Christine is the author of "How You Know Already: Questions to ask yourself to find the answers within," as she believes we are all unique, and so are each of our paths to follow. She is dedicated to her clients and supporting their growth and journey. Her motto: Design your life, don't just live it!