By: Erin Olivo Ph.D / Source: Psychology Today

Fear is an emotion that many people try to avoid because it makes you feel uncomfortable. But did you know that fear can also motivate you?

I play a game on my iPad where you shoot different colored balls at rows of other colored balls, and when you match up the colors, you clear the lines.

I could zip through the first three rounds no problem but I couldn’t seem to ever make it past the fourth round.

It was so frustrating that every time I tried, I failed. I started getting really tense and anxious each time as I began the fourth round—and that’s when I was hooked.

The challenge of getting to the next level and the fear of not getting to that level kept me motivated. And when I finally mastered the fourth round it felt like acing my driver’s test when I was 16-years-old.

Now of course, the bigger the stakes, the harder it is to hold on to this idea of fear and frustration being motivating. However, the things in life that you’re afraid of and that make you feel vulnerable are often the most important to you.

When you face your fear and allow yourself to feel vulnerable, whatever you’re trying to achieve will bring true meaning and joy to your life. Is there anything you aren’t facing right now because your fear is holding you back?

Perhaps you aren’t applying for that better job because you think you don’t have the experience or you don’t think you can handle the anxiety of interviewing. (Read this post (link is external) about how to achieve your goals).

Maybe you aren’t leaving that “perfectly fine, but really going nowhere” relationship because you’re afraid that you won’t find a better partner.

Or perhaps you find that you don’t share how you’re really feeling or thinking because you’re afraid that you’ll be judged for it.

If any of these sounds familiar, give these three strategies a try and face your biggest fears head on!

Visualize

Picture yourself doing the thing you fear and follow it through to your worst-case scenario. For this visualization you want to really try to see yourself as if you’re watching a movie in your imagination.

Don’t hold back—play out the thing you fear the most and see it all unfold in your mind.

Evaluate

Now evaluate your “worst case scenario” fears:

1. Are they really as bad as you’re imagining? Truly evaluate the probability of your worst fear coming to pass.

2. If you asked your best friend what she thought of your worst-case scenario what would she say?

3. Are you overlooking any strengths you have or positives in the situation that would change your evaluation?

4. Can you plan ahead and problem solve any of the potential challenges or obstacles?

Visualize Again

This time, picture yourself doing the thing you fear but visualize it as if you got a magical advanced warning of exactly what might happen. Now you have the ability to stay calm and handle it all with grace, self-compassion and wisdom.

Watch yourself as you cope with your fear and skillfully manage any downsides that come up. You’ve just rehearsed living the situation in Wise Mind, which is the goal of Wise Mind Living (link is external).

If you feel you need to work through any other scenarios, go back and do the evaluation and visualization again. And when you’re ready, jump in and get the ball rolling in real life!

As Eleanor Roosevelt so eloquently said, “You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face.”

Source: Body Mind Soul Spirit

Of the many problems we face today, some are natural calamities and must be accepted and faced with equanimity. Others, however, are of our own making, created by misunderstanding, and can be corrected.

One such type arises from the conflict of ideologies, political or religious, when people fight each other for petty ends, losing sight of the basic humanity that binds us all together as a single human family.

We must remember that the different religions, ideologies, and political systems of the world are meant for human beings to achieve happiness.

We must not lose sight of this fundamental goal and at no time should we place means above ends; the supremacy of humanity over matter and ideology must always be maintained.

By far the greatest single danger facing humankind – in fact, all living beings on our planet – is the threat of nuclear destruction.

I need not elaborate on this danger, but I would like to appeal to all the leaders of the nuclear powers who literally hold the future of the world in their hands, to the scientists and technicians who continue to create these awesome weapons of destruction.

And to all the people at large who are in a position to influence their leaders: I appeal to them to exercise their sanity and begin to work at dismantling and destroying all nuclear weapons.

We know that in the event of a nuclear war there will be no victors because there will be no survivors! Is it not frightening just to contemplate such inhuman and heartless destruction?

And, is it not logical that we should remove the cause for our own destruction when we know the cause and have both the time and the means to do so?

Often we cannot overcome our problems because we either do not know the cause or, if we understand it, do not have the means to remove it. This is not the case with the nuclear threat. ~ Dalai Lama

At the turn of this century, the Dalai Lama issued the following eighteen rules for living.

Rule 1. Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

Rule 2. When you lose, don’t lose the lesson

Rule 3. Follow the three Rs: 1. Respect for self 2. Respect for others 3. Responsibility for all your actions.

Rule 4. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.

Rule 5. Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.

Rule 6. Don’t let a little dispute injure a great friendship.

Rule 7. When you realize you’ve made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

Rule 8. Spend some time alone every day.

Rule 9. Open your arms to change, but don’t let go of your values.

Rule 10. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.

Rule 11. Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you’ll be able to enjoy it a second time.

Rule 12. A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.

Rule 13. In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don’t bring up the past.

Rule 14. Share your knowledge. It’s a way to achieve immortality.

Rule 15. Be gentle with the earth.

Rule 16. Once a year, go someplace you’ve never been before.

Rule 17. Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.

Rule 18. Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.