Feel the Fear And Do It Anyway

A classic book that predates Nike’s slogan, Just Do It!

Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway is a crucial read for anyone considering change and needing to summon up the courage to move from thinking to action. It is a book on fear, emotional paralysis, and the importance of self-responsibility.

I have been recommending this book to clients for years. This powerful book has an impact on everyone who is ready to move from analysis paralysis to the active creation of a fulfilling life.

Don’t get me wrong, analysis and insight are the cornerstones of psychotherapy, but only half the solution.

The essence that I have taken away from the book is that you can diminish the impact of fear in your life if you develop more trust in your ability to handle whatever comes your way.

The only way to trust yourself is to test yourself and push yourself beyond your comfort zone. Stop waiting for someone to give something to you. You will be waiting a long time.

Here is a summary of Dr. Jeffer’s key points:

• Not only are you going to experience fear when you are in unfamiliar territory, but so is everyone else.
• Pushing through fear is less frightening than living with the underlying fear that comes with helplessness.
• It is very upsetting when you see yourself as your own worst enemy. On the other hand, this realization is your biggest blessing. If you can create your own misery, it stands to reason that you can create your own joy.
• Responsibility means never blaming anyone else for what you are doing or feeling, being aware of the payoff that keeps you stuck, figuring out what you want in life and acting on it and being aware of the multitude of choices that you have in any given situation.
• To handle fear is to move from a position of pain to one of power.

Simple, straightforward and powerful words. Could this be the antidote to analysis paralysis? Just Do It!

Tags: Book Reviews, Fear

This entry was posted on Monday, September 13th, 2010 at 6:00 PM and is filed under Book Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.