Page 9 - Coping Skills Ten Life Rules

COPING SKILLS TEN LIFE RULES VIII.I shall refuse to allow my fears to determine how I shall live my life.How often have you said “I really wanted to do … but I am afraid to try?” Do you really want to look back at your life and see all the opportunities you missed lay by the wayside because of that one phase, “But I was afraid.” Bravery is not the absence of fear but the ability to do what you need to do despite being afraid.How much of your normal day is spent in thinking about or avoiding things you fear? A great many of us spend more of our life avoiding rather than achieving. It is natural for a child who is small and weak to be fearful. But too often that fear generalizes into areas that need not be feared. A child may be a “picky eater.” But do they avoid new or differently prepared foods? Is it the food that they don’t like or is it the novelty that causes fear. In the Coping Skills series, many stories such as, Chocolate Festival, The Little Prince and others incorporate the negative consequences of the emotion of fear. Thesestories illustrate how we are unable to effectively deal with the irrational (Stinky) thinking that generates the emotion of fear. Fear justifies our unwillingness to do things we know we should do in order to deal better with life, from reading aloud in class to being assertive with a coworker. It allows our inhumanity to man because they do not look like or believe like me. In our human history, bravery is one of the most prized qualities. But it is not a magic potion that allows us to be brave. It is the ability to “talk sense to ourselves” and we call that "Good Thinking". “What is the worst thatcould happen if I ... and am I willing to live with that consequence?” If you are, then you will be brave in thesmall and large issues of life. Being brave will allow you to be kind when others are mean. It will allow you to see the good in those who are different. It will allow you to do the right thing even if others ridicule you. A person who has the ability to use Good Thinking and manage their emotions will be trusted and admired. Not allowing your fears to rule you will allow you to develop qualities more valuable than all the money in the world.