“Always do what you are afraid to do. Ralph Waldo Emerson
Now, what Emerson is talking about isn’t literally always, all the time. Meaning, if you are afraid to dive into a swimming pool full of hungry pissed off piranha, you might be right in following your fear and heading in the opposite direction. If you are afraid to head to Thailand and ride a trannie bareback, yup, your fear is your best friend.
That being said, there are things in life that we want, and very often, there is a corresponding level of fear that is directly proportional with how badly we want something, and how much it will benefit us. You want to go to Harvard; you are afraid of getting rejected. You want to go defend yourself at traffic court; you’re afraid of getting points put on your license if you screw up.
However, much of what we are afraid of in life, isn’t so bad. If you don’t get into Harvard, you’ll get in elsewhere, and you’ll kick yourself if you don’t try at all. You lose in traffic court, you’ll suck it up and forget about it in a year.
Always do what you are afraid to do, as long as it’s the right thing to do, and it’s what you really want. Looking back on your life, you’ll be so glad you did.
