I’ve been working on my fears lately. Not the big, hairy, scary ones about our planet, the more insidious ones that fuel a scarcity or lack in me. I don’t like that feeling of panic that sets in when I suddenly realize I took a wrong turn and don’t know where I am or how to get back to my hotel. For starters, I know I have a map app that will get me there. That’s not where fear lives, though. It lives below my brain level, which is why countering it in my brain isn’t very successful. It’s emotional, not rational.

Pick a fear. Not a gigantic one (like the aforementioned planet), a small one that shows up for you in odd times or strange ways. List the emotions you are having – mine are about being stupid for not knowing how to get somewhere, having to ask for help is embarrassing because now someone else knows I’m stupid, to name two.

Now ask yourself what is underneath that. And keep asking that question til you feel an origin of this fear – for me, it’s not being good enough. And there is a very large gap between being turned around in a new city and being not good enough in the world! So I laugh. Acknowledging this gap and how silly it is. Which releases the grip of the fear.

I might feel that fear again, and that’s okay. I’m on a journey for my own benefit. I expect I’ll spot that fear sooner and release it more quickly. Once you start doing this work for yourself, you can help others. And with fear so dominant in our world right now, this is a quest we all benefit from.

So, find a fear? Now work it!