No Fear

Recently, I asked friends what they do to force themselves beyond their comfort zones. How do they quiet the fear that stops them from doing things they truly need or deeply want to do?

One friend, Jess Rice, said that for about one year, he had the words NO FEAR posted at his workstation. Jess, who is among other things a talented artist (see his work at jessrice.com), strikes me as someone who is fearless, someone who just does what is authentic for him. Apparently, while that's largely true, even he sometimes has to dig deep
to find courage! That was helpful to know.

I immediately wrote the words NO FEAR on my office blackboard. I relax a little when I see it. Chalk on a blackboard is accessible and friendly. It reminds me of childhood, when we weren't expected to know everything; we were expected to learn. That's what I need to remember: to expect myself to learn as I move toward unknown, uncomfortable things. It's crazy to think I should know how to master situations I've never confronted before. But if I trust that I'll learn what I need to know about new situations, the things I fear--rejection, failure, getting trapped--lose their power.

The evening after I wrote those words, I sat down at my computer to watch a movie. I noticed, during a dark and scary scene, that I could see NO FEAR reflected on the computer screen. Actually, what I saw was RAEF ON. I thought about reversing the words on the blackboard so the reflection on the screen correctly showed NO FEAR. I decided against it. I like the backwards version. It feels like a powerful and fun secret.