Fear Part 2
“Fear…it motivates some while it paralyzes others. Your ability to face AND control fear will determine how it affects your life as well as the level of success you achieve…” — Rick Cox
We left off last week saying you have what it takes to overcome anything you face. Further, you have what it takes to become anything you desire. The only thing in most cases keeping you from overcoming and being is fear.
In 1937 Napoleon Hill listed six basic fears in his book Think and Grow Rich, but in 1938 he revisits these six most effective fears in Outwitting the Devil (which by the way was locked in a vault and not published until 2011) and exposes how they are used to thwart, hinder or ultimately paralyze us to the point of not being able to make a decision and thus lose out on opportunity as well as living a life of fulfillment. Each one of these six fears, have something in them that will keep you from moving forward and becoming all you can be.
Napoleon Hill says the six basic fears are:
• The Fear of Death
• The Fear of Old Age
• The Fear of Loss of Love
• The Fear of Ill Health
• The Fear of Criticism
• The Fear of Poverty
It was Hill’s belief that the two most powerful Fears were that of Death and that of Poverty and the reasons for those should be quite evident, but we will discuss each of them in detail.
The Fear of Death as stated above is one of the most insidious of fears as it can keep you focused on that over which you have no control. The fear of death is so strong because no one really knows what is on the other side. Is it going to be bad or is there the possibility it might be good? Am I going to be judged for all of the bad I have done, even in thoughts and dreams? Or am I going to move forward based on the fact I have been able to put my failures and faults behind me?
The problem is you become focused on dying, which takes your eyes or focus off of making the most of your life. You also begin to worry about dying because you are afraid of leaving your loved ones in dire straits; in poverty should you die. The fear of death has you focusing on death rather than your goals and death becomes the result as you are no longer living to accomplish since you are fearful of dying. The key is to focus on living. It is to focus on doing that which is necessary to enjoy life while you’re alive. Death will then have no hold on you for you are not focused dying, but on living.
The Fear of Old Age will rob you of your freedom and independence in three basic ways: physically, emotionally and economically. You begin to slow down instead of using your wisdom and experience to help you remain in the uppermost echelon of productive citizens. Your focus winds up causing you to slow down believing your best years are behind you instead of in front of you. You stop taking the initiative or using your imagination. You lose that edge of self-reliance.
Yet, the way man is designed, is that nothing can be taken away from you without something of equal or greater value taking its place. Man’s greatest achievements have for the most part been in his second half of his life. The key isn’t to focus on how old you are it is to focus on how much you have to contribute to those around you in some way shape or form. This will remove the fear of old age.
The Fear of Loss of Love can be found in almost every venue of music and all stories written, which points to the fact this is a major fear. This fear inspires jealousy, suspicion, fault finding, bitterness, hatred and the like. When one is given to jealousy, they are quickly reduced to ruin. This happens because jealousy destroys their home life, job or business, professional relationships and friendships due to their insidious belief that everyone is out to get them or take from them. They believe they are being cheated by one and all and can see no hope in those around them. They neither see nor find hope in themselves either.
There is an old adage and even a Bible scripture that says no man ever yet hated his own flesh. The answer is learning to love yourself through the process of accepting yourself as you are for in doing so, you will come to know and recognize that others will love you as you love yourself. When this happens the loss of love will have to take a back seat.
Best of LUCK as you
Labor Under Correct Knowledge…
Respectfully,
Rick Cox