“There are no safe paths in this part of the world. Remember you are over the Edge of the Wild now, and in for all sorts of fun wherever you go.” ~ J. R. R. Tolkien, The Hobbit
fear
Train Your Willpower
“Willpower is the key to success. Successful people strive no matter what they feel by applying their will to overcome apathy, doubt or fear.” ~ Dan Millman
Go For It
Humans do not like rejection. The fear of rejection holds many people from reaching their goal(s). It hurts to be rejected whether it’s love, job seeking, or any other endeavor. We let our minds tell us ahead of an event, “Why try, he/she will say no.” So we don’t connect with another person whom we’d like to know better because “we know” they will reject us.” When I was a non tenured, first year faculty member at the university I went to a work shop that was going to teach us how to get published. Publish or perish was the mantra so I made sure I went. I took one important piece of advice from the day long workshop and it stayed with me throughout my career. The speaker said (I’m paraphrasing), “You’re all going to get rejected over and over again. Get over it. Allow yourselves to be angry for one day. Then read the criticisms and go back to work on the paper you submitted that was rejected and submit it again. Don’t let any rejected paper stay on your desk longer than 48 hours. That advice worked for me. One of my favorite stories is how one of my papers was rejected by five different publishers. I kept working at it and the sixth publisher accepted it. The paper then was picked up by national media. So the lesson from all of this is, don’t let the fear of rejection stop you from trying. Is there someone you want to meet but fear rejection, go for it. Is there a job you want to apply for but fear rejection, go for it. Don’t fear Going For It. Fear not going for it.
Today’s Quote: Have No Fear
I have not ceased being fearful, but I have ceased to let fear control me. Erica Jong
Today’s Poem: Fate by Francis Bret Harte
Fate
Francis Bret Hart
“The sky is clouded, the rocks are bare,
The spray of the tempest is white in air;
The winds are out with the waves at play,
And I shall not tempt the sea to-day.
“The trail is narrow, the wood is dim,
The panther clings to the arching limb;
And the lion’s whelps are abroad at play,
And I shall not join in the chase to-day.”
But the ship sailed safely over the sea,
And the hunters came from the chase in glee;
And the town that was builded upon a rock
Was swallowed up in the earthquake shock.
Today’s Thought: Forego Anger, Work to Resolve Issues
One of the easiest emotions to tap into is anger. Couple anger with fear and wrap it in bias and you’ve created a tornado capable of great destruction that in the end doesn’t discriminate who it hurts. It’s a lot more difficult to work through differences and seek areas of agreement. Strong people seek areas of agreement and forego the tornado spewing vitriol.
Today’s Poem: Where the Mind is Without Fear by Rabindranath Tagore
Where the Mind is Without Fear
Rabindranath Tagore
Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high
Where knowledge is free
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments
By narrow domestic walls
Where words come out from the depth of truth
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way
Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit
Where the mind is led forward by thee
Into ever-widening thought and action
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.
Today’s Thought: No Regrets
‘Cause I’ll never know ’til it’s over
If I’m right or I’m wrong loving you
But I’d rather be sorry for something I’ve done
Than for something that I didn’t do (Lyrics from I’d Rather Be Sorry by Kris Kristofferson)
NOTE: Great opportunities may lie in front of us. We hesitate to take them. We’re not sure if we’ll be successful. We’re not sure if it is a good move. Were not sure . . . So, we don’t take the leap. We’re left wondering what would have happened if we dared to take the opportunity. Not taking the leap is a sure-fire way to live a life filled with regret. If we take the chance, we lay a foundation of confidence in our minds to embrace the next opportunity.
Thinking Out Loud: Live Life Courageously
Today’s Thinking Out Loud reflection is on Cervantes work, Don Quixote.
“The fear Thou Art in, Sancho,” said Don Quixote, “prevents thee from seeing or hearing correctly, for one of the effects of fear is to derange the senses and make things appear different from what they are; if thou art in such fear, withdraw to one side and leave me alone to myself, for alone I suffice to bring victory to that side to which I shall give my aid.” ― Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
Note: Fear is a crippler. Once it grabs hold of us our minds create situations that do not exist. We imagine the worst and create a minefield for us to navigate through. It causes us to be paralyzed from acting. It is wise to ask ourself if the fear we currently experience is real or is it imagined? It takes courage to live. It takes courage to set out on the adventure. If we live in fear and do not take our adventure we find ourselves slowly becoming emaciated as we watch our lives slip past us. Step boldly into life and experience it to its fullest.
