Finding Fearlessness

 in 2018 your limitations  tagged #conversationsthatmatter / #elainefraserauthor / #fear / #fearless / #fearlessness / #findingfearlessness / #notgoodenough / #thresholds / courage / kinwomen / limitations by

Kinwomen

Don’t push away all that is uncomfortable, and cling to all that is pleasurable.

This is ego. Instead, breathe deeply and relax into the present moment.

This nervous feeling in your heart?

Breathe in, breathe out.

Stay for one moment.

This is fearlessness. 

Waylon Lewis.

In this Kinwomen year of Fear Less, what if we set our intentions to conquer just one of the fears that limit us?

These fears don’t have to be of the hold-a-snake or jump-out-of-a-plane sort of deal. They might be the who-am-I–to …? type of fear.

This year, I’m tackling a fear I’ve faced before. The fear of not being good enough.

The thought of sending my latest novel to agents and publishers is causing me to run. Run away from what I need to do. Runaway and avoid the moment of truth.

The novel has been in my head and heart for years, and now it’s ready to be sent to agents. The manuscript sits on my laptop. It judges me. I judge me.

  • It’s in a different genre than I’ve written before.
  • I’ve indie published my previous five books, why would a traditional publisher want it?
  • I’m not twenty-five or thirty anymore.

I could sit with the comfort of having written a book. I could avoid the discomfort of putting my work out for criticism.  But it will never be released into the world unless I push past my fears, questions, and insecurities.

The transition from fear to action is uncomfortable and scary.

I sit with my manuscript and see the product of study, travel, research, writing, investment of time, investment of money, and the sacrifice of hours, days, weeks, months, years of writing.

I weigh up the investment with the discomfort of risking a ‘No’ from agents and publishers.

I weigh it up with the belief that my book is good enough to sit on the bookshelves of the world.

I’m at a threshold—a point in life where I could step into me I’m meant to be.

Thresholds are places of transition where fear is overcome by sacrifice, trust, and courage.

Thresholds take guts to cross.

You know, sometimes all you need is twenty seconds of insane courage. Just literally twenty seconds of just embarrassing bravery. And I promise you, something great will come of it.

Benjamin Mee, We Bought a Zoo

I’ve been in this place of transition before.

I’ve stepped over the threshold of my limitations.

I’ve broken through old limits.

I’ve learned to walk beyond my limitations.

I’ll breathe in and breathe out.

I’ll harness my twenty seconds of insane courage and embarrassing bravery.

I’ll press send.

Do you have a fear that limits you?

What are you going to conquer this year?

love, Elaine

 

 

 

 

About Elaine Fraser

Elaine realised she wanted to be a writer at ten years of age when the words flew off the page during a creative writing lesson. She studied English and Education at university and went on to spend many years as a high school English teacher teaching others how to write. In 2005, Elaine took the plunge and began writing full-time. Since then she has published five books and blogs at www.elainefraser.co. Elaine’s passion is to write about real issues with a spiritual edge. When she’s not travelling the world in search of quirky bookstores or attending writing retreats in exotic locations, she can be found in the Perth hills sitting in her library—writing, reading, mentoring writers and hugging her golden retriever.