Facing Fear

A friend of mine told me, "Every once in a while, everyone should do something that scares them." When you are confronted with something that makes you knees quiver, your stomach to clench or your brain to think twice, do you slink away in cowardice? Or do you gird up your loins, cut a fresh slice of courage, take a deep breath and face it? President Spencer W Kimball knew what it meant to face his challenges in life with courage. His personal motto was the simple and powerful: "Do it." Sometimes people spend more energy cowering and avoiding their fear than they would if they were to stand up and face trepidation. Some women have a knack to confront their fears and succeed. Sure, it's scary, but the success of overcoming that fear is sweet. Other women get their lives limited because they give up when faced with their fears. Their spheres grow narrower and narrower as their fears defeat them and push them into a tiny little corner of unhappiness. If you find yourself shrinking back from doing something because you are afraid, ask yourself, "Why am I afraid?" Why are you afraid? Some women let fear control them without truly understanding why they are afraid. Explore your fear. Reflect on why you are afraid. Sometimes overcoming why you are afraid is more powerful than facing the fear itself. Give yourself a bit of self-reflection sometime and look to the example of others. If they can push through fear and succeed, why not you?