Whether you are afraid of greatness or afraid of failure, fear will stop you mid-step. Not once, but again and again.

So whether you have clarity, a strategic plan, actionable steps and a strong vision, if you don’t deal with the fears that will inevitable arise, you won’t reach the finish line.

The first step is overcoming this “enemy” sound counter-intuitive. Befriend your fears. Study them, understand why they arise, what they are trying to protect you from. Compassion makes a better friend than resistance. Be kind to your fears, chat with them…let them speak.Once you’ve better understand your friend, fear, you can begin to work  with it.

Does your fear say, you’ll have to change your entire life if you succeed, perhaps move, buy stuff, make new friends, invest money? Is it putting the “kabosh” on your dream to prevent overwhelm and multiple changes, decisions?

Is your fear saying, “Don’t even try,” to protect you from disappointment, too much work, too little time for play?

After you’ve sought  out the intelligence of your fear, the helpful quality, dialogue with it. How will you actually deal with the consequences?What support can you put in place? What contingencies can you consider?

As you move with compassion, you’ll find that your fears are actually useful, like good friends.    And your vision benefits from an intimate knowledge of these new friends.