You’ll never become the person you were meant to be if you let fear be the motivating force behind your thoughts and actions.
Fear is a powerful motivator; there’s no question about that. But more often than not, making decisions based on fear instead of faith, confidence, and passion will lead you down a dark path where your true dreams never come true.
Augie Garrido, the winningest baseball coach in NCAA Division I history, offers this eye-opening advice on the importance of eliminating fear…
My biggest challenge with student-athletes coming out of high school or junior college has been to release fear’s hold on them. My job is to free them of that burden and to show them better, healthier sources of motivation.
While it is possible to achieve considerable outward success with fear as a driving force, that particular driver will eventually bring most people to their knees—as it once did me.
Fulfillment and happiness come only when you are pursuing your passion and are totally engaged because of your love of the game, whatever your game might be.
When you are driven by fear, you may win but you have no peace. When you pursue your passions, you find fulfillment in every moment, every day, every swing of the bat, every pitch thrown.
Once I stepped onto a fearless field, I realized that life is about having the courage to act on your ideas, to keep stretching and growing and to pursue your destiny and fulfillment. What a privilege that is!
– Augie Garrido, from his book Life Is Yours to Win
As I wrote about in Think Like a Warrior, learning to choose faith over fear is the most important—and perhaps the most difficult—aspect of developing the mindset required for success and happiness.
While it’s important to be smart and protect yourself from unnecessary downside risks, at some point you have to step forward in confidence and follow the dreams in your heart. You need courage to do this. You need a fearless attitude that says, “I have what it takes to make this happen.”
Without that fearless confidence, you’ll never know what you were capable of achieving.
Break yourself free from the chains of fear and start pursuing the dreams that are deep within you. It’s never too late to get started.
Be courageous, be fearless, and start chasing your dreams today.
