Salespeople know of this powerful influence. People buy truckloads of insurance in preparation for some disaster that "might" happen. "It is better to be safe than sorry." Do you have an extra set of keys (or two) for your house or car? Do you buy food, drinks or even pills that will help you improve your complexion or lose unwanted weight?

Whether it is a fear of losing something good, or getting something bad, fear is a driving force that is always there ...

Why does someone behave rudely or arrogantly?

Because he or she is afraid of losing their "feeling of" authoritative power, which would destroy or undermine his or her position in society. You already know where jealousy stems from - out of fear for you, wanting or losing something you think you cannot have or fear that someone else will get what you feel "belongs to you."

New situations in life force you to confront a new set of fears. You may even comfort yourself by saying it isn't so bad. Have you ever made a doctor's appointment, a dentist appointment or a hairstyling appointment only to arrive in respective waiting area with no pain or best hair day you've had in a long time? Now you want to go home. Fear is a powerful motivator.

Some of more common fears are:

1. Fear of Unknown 2. Fear of Failure and Rejection 3. Fear of Loss (losing what you have) 4. Fear of Facing Reality 5. Fear of Disapproval

You have to deal with ALL of these fears if you want to succeed.

You cannot deny them or banish them to your subconscious, as that will only add fuel to a fire that will probably and suddenly burst out beyond your control. Like fires, fears are easiest to squelch when they are still small.

Confront your fears and banish them forever!

Start with ...

THE FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN

There isn’t a person alive that isn’t apprehensive, nervous or even fearful of entering new territory, wandering into great unknown. What will it hold? How will it change you? Will you be able to handle situation or complete task? Will you know what to do and have ability to do it? Will you be laughed at? Will it be worth it?

One way of confronting unknown is to recognize that without action you will never escape mediocrity. The primary difference between people who fulfill their dreams and those that don’t is action – former move from words to action, latter never get beyond words.

Ask yourself:

What could I lose if I begin to act? Answer frankly. Typical answers are time, pride and so on. You should note that these answers are merely superficial.

Some of her carvings were appreciated, but other times she got complaints. The wood swelled in damp weather and split in dry. The complaints dampened her enthusiasm for her work and ate away at her self-confidence. She decided she was no good at carving, was never meant to be a carver. She looked around at what she could do and at what she liked.

Weaving. The colours were beautiful. The designs intricate. The fabric appealing. Having little money, she bought cheap thread and set up her stall off on one side of bazaar. No one came. She knew she was too far from center and her cloth not attractive enough.

One day as she was walking in woods trying to decide what she should do, she came across some translucent stones lying in a stream bed. Smooth, deep, and beautiful. She gathered up handfuls, filling her pockets.

Returning to market, she went right to center, and holding two of stones to catch light, showed them to passer-bys. But they pushed past her, paying her no mind. She was bumped into a post, stopping her in bewilderment. “Why can’t they see how beautiful these stones are?” she thought.