I hope the title caught your attention. And nay. This is NOT a post about Khanda or Tega. A double-edged sword refers to an advantage that can turn into a disadvantage (see: Wiktionary). In the past, some inept swordsman probably cut himself while fighting his enemy with a dual-edged sword and coined the term to commemorate the event. No? Anyway, you are about to learn the two sides to emotions.
The Birth of Your Greatest Fears
Welcome to the Dark Side. Having emotions causes us to have fears. Here’s a general list of things that we fear:
| - | Poverty |
| - | Sickness |
| - | Ageing |
| - | Death |
| - | Loneliness |
| - | and IMHO, the most deadly of all, FAILURE! |
Having too many fears in our hearts often hold us back and impede our growth. Excessive fear causes us…
| - | To become risk averse |
| - | To keep within our comfort zones |
| - | To lose our proactivity |
| - | To lose our logical reasoning |
Yet, successful people often have to take on calculated risks! People like Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, Walt Disney, Donald Trumps, Oprah Winfrey and Steve Jobs took on countless risks in their lives before they succeeded!
When Our Fears Turn On Us…
Take a look at these scenarios and how your fears can possibly bring you down.
| Type of Fear | Scenario | Action | Result |
| Poverty | You got wind that Company XYZ is about to face a lawsuit. Stock prices are likely to plunge. | Without verifying the news, you sell off all your existing shares at a loss. | The news turn out to be false. You just slapped yourself on the face. |
| Sickness/ Death | A greedy financial advisor recommends way too many policies to you. He scares you with a series of horror stories about people who didn’t get sufficient coverage and bit the dust later on. | You buy all of them, even though it’s beyond your means. | You struggle to keep up with the premiums. Your greedy financial advisor earns a hefty commission. |
| Failure | Your friend is starting an events company and invites you to join him in his business venture. The nature of the work excites you. | You have a stable salaried job. You fear that you won’t will be able to command the same salary if you were to step out. So, you declined the offer. | Your friend goes on to establish a multi-million dollar business. You lament about the opportunity you lost. |
Of course…
Having Fears Isn’t Always Bad!
I’ve read many self-help books. And most authors often emphasize the negative impacts of having fears. In their perspective, they presume that YOU are reading the book because you are some fearful individual. Recommend the same book to some fearless individual and you’ll see him running straight into pitfalls without giving much thought.
Welcome to the Light. Having fears isn’t always that bad. But the key word here is moderation. Having a little fear can benefit us by…
| - | Keeping ourselves in check |
| - | Protecting you from harm by keeping you out of sources of danger |
The Moral of The Story…
Here’s the bottom line. And I’m probably the first to tell you this – keep your daily dosage of fears SMALL. Most people will tell you to get rid of them. I’ll say you keep some, so that you’ll retain the ability to protect yourself!
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