It’s safe to say that in everyone’s life, there have been moments where we’ve been motivated by fear.
Perhaps you had a health scare that motivated some sort of lifestyle change. Or you may have upped your game at work for fear of being let go. After all, organizations regularly use fear to motivate employees to work harder and more efficiently.
The problem with fear as motivation is that its long-term effects can be devastating. And they can quickly outweigh the motivation it initially produced.
Are You Motivated by Fear?
Many of us have a natural leaning toward fear as a motivator. It’s an evolutionary throwback in our DNA that helped us survive at some point. But fear is meant to be temporary and fleeting to enact immediate change.
By contrast, when you’re motivated through fear to make sweeping and long-lasting changes, it won’t take long before you experience the sheer discomfort of constantly concentrating on all of the negative things that will happen if you don’t stick with those changes. It’s simply not sustainable.
This mindset is so pervasive and normalized, you might not even be aware that you’re motivated by fear. Some telltale signs that you are include the following:
- not feeling fully present
- anticipating the worst outcome to every scenario (catastrophic thinking)
- turning down activities that bring you joy
- trying to change others to fit your “mold”
- working from unrealistic expectations that leave you disappointed
- striving for perfection
- believing that if you do more, you’ll matter more
To make matters worse, the more you work out of fear, the more it ignites fear in those around you. This isn’t an indictment. Nor is it a jail sentence. It’s just reality. And the best way to cease using fear as motivation is to become aware of how you’re doing it in the first place.
Being Aware of Fear
Mahatma Gandhi had it right when he said that fear kills the soul.
Fear causes you to worry about how others may react to you when you’re being genuine. As a result, you’re unable to be open, honest, and fully yourself. You shut yourself off from others and are in a state of conflict between who you truly are and whom you present to others.
Internationally renowned spiritual teacher and author Dr. David Hawkins was credited for exploring the levels of consciousness. He created what’s known as the Map of Consciousness which sheds light on how you perceive the world.
In a nutshell, he took emotions and broke them down into two camps – force and power.
Force emotions keep us trapped. Among the emotions Hawkins considered force are pride, anger, desire, grief, apathy, guilt, and shame. Force emotions rise out of fear.
Meanwhile, power emotions are those that lead to happiness, productivity, and positive outcomes. These are the true motivators and they include peace, joy, love, reason, acceptance, willingness, neutrality, and courage. Power emotions rise out of love.
Once you begin to recognize that you’re dominated by force emotions that come from fear, you can begin to make that shift toward power emotions that are birthed from a loving place.
Making the Shift to Love Starts with Courage
Of course, this is easier said than done.
Society at large is geared toward keeping us in a state of fear. Our judicial system is founded on penalties and punishment. Marketers tell us we never have enough and are nothing until we get it all. Social media thrives on the toxic idea that you’re always missing out on something (known as FOMO). So how in the world, you might wonder, are you expected to access freedom and authenticity under such oppressive forces?
Start with developing the courage to be yourself and accept who you are. This is where you use fear to your advantage. How? Remember that courage doesn’t mean fearlessness. It’s actually the opposite. Courage is the ability to be brave and go forward in the midst of (sometimes paralyzing) fear.
Perhaps this looks like meeting new people who share some of your passions and are more likely to accept you as you are. Or it might be participating in the things that give you joy rather than slogging through drudgery out of fear of losing the very thing that makes you miserable!
Whatever the case, once you begin to recognize the empowering energy generated by using love as your motivator, it won’t take long before you grasp how limited you were when fear was in the driver’s seat. And that’s its own form of motivation!
Allowing Love to Motivate Takes Time
If you’ve spent a lifetime being motivated by fear, all of the above information may seem like a foreign language. We get it. It takes time and patience to embrace a new paradigm.
That’s why we’re here to support you with our life coaching and yoga services. A certified life coach can help you identify why you’re having trouble moving forward and motivate you with actionable and love-based steps. Meanwhile, yoga can help you recognize where fear is dictating your actions and guide you to a more mindful state of being.
So why not contact us today to start finding your true source of motivation? It may be the most courageous thing you ever do.
