Better to have fear push you from behind

It can be difficult for many people to identify and define what we want because of all the possible things we could want and the uncertainty each of them lays out in front of us. Every path and decision leads somewhere, and all of them may feel scary to the degree you're unfamiliar with those paths.

Motivation is measured by what you are willing to sacrifice and work for in the attainment of a desire. Fear is present many times because of the blind nature of all the twists and turns in the road ahead, which may be completely novel to you and give rise to doubts and insecurity. From a psychological perspective, it is far better to have fear behind you to push you forward than have it in front of you blocking any kind of action.

You can use the momentum of fear behind you as a mechanism to enhance your goal pursuit. You put your fear behind you when it's well integrated into your whole persona—your psychology and essence of being. You can integrate fears by confronting them, one step at a time if necessary, starting with the smallest possible step necessary to begin the process of integration.

If you don't voluntarily expose yourself to your fears and integrate them, they remain in front of you, like a wall that prevents you from peeking over the other side. You don't act and pursue your goals because of this heavy blockage and remain stagnant, which may create some psychological issues because what you wish to be is different from what you are, yet you feel paralyzed to act because of this large wall in front of you that you shy away from every time you notice it.

You can overcome fears, one at a time, no matter how large they feel in the moment, through attentive voluntary exposure. The mere act of exposure to what scares you creates a sense of enlargement, courage, confidence, and momentum toward action—the necessary ingredient of success.

As Jungian psychoanalyst dr. James Hollis often points out, successful decision-making is a matter of choosing the option that expands you, that makes you grow larger and more resilient in your capacity to do and accept things.