Fear: Which One is Holding You Back?

Fear_ Which One is Holding You Back_ An ADD Woman

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Are You Afraid?

When it comes to fear, which one is holding you back?

Maybe you’re not afraid right this very second, but most of us are, way more than we would care to admit.

Especially those of us with ADHD, because we’re not confident to begin with, and we’re much more familiar with failure than we’d like to be.

In fact, the anxiety that so many of us carry around with us is nothing more than fear at it’s heart.

So what kind of fear is it?

And once we recognize it, is there something that we can do about it?

Different Kinds of Fear

You may have never thought of it this way before, but fear comes in many shapes and sizes.

There are small fears, like my fear of feathers and birds. (I don’t know what to tell you.)

Silly fears, like being afraid of walking up the bleacher stairs at a football game, because they have no risers and you can see the ground. (I’m afraid that somehow I’m going to slip and fall, sideways, right through them, even though I know that’s physically impossible. And you can stop laughing any time.)

There are the bigger ones, like being afraid of public speaking, or taking tests, or even just being afraid of failing.

And then there are the really big fears, the ones we can’t even bring ourselves to name.

When you think about it, there’s a fear for almost everything (as I have already demonstrated).

How It’s Holding You Back

Some of your fears (like some of mine) may not be holding you back. In fact, 99% of the time, they may not affect you at all.

But we do have fears – all of us – that can hold us back, that can keep us from doing something important in our lives.

Ruth Soukup, a blogger, New York Times best selling author, and so much more, has written a book about our fears. She calls it, “Do It Scared“, which is also the name of her podcast.

Although I haven’t finished the book yet – because I’m so busy taking notes – I can tell you it feels like Ruth peeked into my life and wrote about me.

So what’s holding me back?

  • Perfectionism – because how can I show up with anything less?
  • Fear of success – because then I either have to maintain those standards or exceed them.
  • Feeling I’m not good enough.
  • Getting the motivation to start, because what if I don’t finish? And what if I do?

Sounding familiar yet?

Do It Scared

Ruth is a monumentally successful woman, and when you read her book, you will be even more amazed by all that she has accomplished in her life. I look up to her, not only as one of my heroes, but as a shining example of what’s possible, of what I could do.

If you go to Ruth’s Do It Scared website, you will find all sorts of really good information about being scared and doing it anyway.

You can also read a few chapters of her new book, pre-order your own copy, and take the Do It Scared Fear Assessment.

I took mine a while ago, and while she may not know about my fear of feathers and bleachers, Ruth knows a lot about me, or at least people like me.

And better yet – she’s got ways for us to get past our fears and get out of our own way.

Think about that.

What would you do if you weren’t afraid?

Lacy Estelle

Lacy Estelle

Lacy Estelle is the writer of Lacyestelle.com and the Podcast host for An ADD Woman.

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