Afraid of Success

As you read this article, I want you to consider what you would like to be doing with your life & also why you are not doing it. Take a minute to ponder these questions before reading any further. You will no doubt come to many external conclusions, such as a lack of money, skills or motivation. I suggest to you that, in actuality, it is anxiety that is preventing you from achieving your dreams.

You are probably thinking, “What a load of rubbish, why should I be afraid of success?” & at a conscious level, maybe you are not.

However, the road to success will usually involve you making many changes in your life. You will have to step into the unknown.

One of the billions of tasks your subconscious mind performs is to protect you from harm.

I want you to imagine you are walking alone down a dimly lit alley, & it’s late at night. As you’re walking along, there is a power cut & the streetlights suddenly go out.

The hairs on the back of your neck stand on end & a shiver is sent down your spine as you hear footsteps approaching you ahead.

As they get closer, your heartbeat speeds up & you begin to perspire. You freeze to the spot as you hear another set of footsteps approaching from behind & then a second, only the second set sounds different, not quite human.

Feeling trapped now, your heart is racing & so is your mind. As the three sets of footsteps bear down upon you, you realise there is no escape, and you frantically search your pockets for some sort of weapon.

But then, the streetlights flicker back to life & you realise that the person approaching you is a policeman on his way home after a long shift.

You look behind you to see only a man walking his dog. You laugh to yourself at being so nervous & your physiology begins to return to normal.

The Ancient Brain

As you read the above story, you may have felt a little anxious as you pictured yourself in that situation. This is due to the fact that your nervous system gives very little distinction between actual events & vividly imagined ones.

In both cases, it was not a conscious decision to feel anxious, but rather your subconscious auto-protect fight or flight response. This response is designed to save your life.

Tens, probably hundreds of thousands of years ago, our ancestors discovered the unknown could be dangerous, even deadly, & this fear got passed on from generation to generation.

Those that didn’t, came to a sticky end & thus are not one of your ancestors.

Addiction as Avoidance

These days, you are unlikely to bump into a T-Rex walking down the street, but we still have built into us a fear of the unknown.

This anxiety can take a variety of forms, but it will usually involve making a decision that involves some sort of risk.

To protect you from harm, your subconscious will throw up reasons for doubt, which prevents you from taking action & therefore keeps you safe.

Most addictions are formed in this way. The by-product of an addiction is pleasure; this distraction makes you feel good in the short term & keeps you from facing your anxiety, safe & secure in the same continuing little rut.

Building Courage

When you find yourself in one of these situations, I want you to show courage & plunge yourself into the unknown.

Courage builds confidence. You may not succeed at first, but learn from the experience. Failure only exists if we stop trying.

If Thomas Edison had given up on his 9,000th attempt at creating the light bulb, we would all still be walking down dark alleyways.

Please Note: I wrote this article many years ago, but as it’s still relevant, I have repurposed it for my blog.

If this rattled your brain in a good way, follow me on Facebook — it’s not enlightenment, but it’s a step up from doomscrolling.