This is Stephen Robbins. Welcome to the Get It Done guys, quick and dirty tips to work less and do more.

Fear. It's probably the number one thing that holds us back from doing the things we want to do or need to do.

We wallow in it. And yet, we're living in one of the safest times in human history.

In America, we're afraid even though we're physically the safest country in all of human history.

We're bordered by two oceans, Mexico and Canada.

Need I say more?

Our top cause of violent death is being shot by a family member,

which doesn't happen nearly as often as people think,

nor given some families does it happen nearly as often as it should, nor, given some families, does it happen

nearly as often as it should. Yet, we live in fear almost constantly. In this article, I'll tell you

how to face your fears. Fear crushes life. Not fear like, oh look, there's a saber-tooth tiger, let's run away.

That's useful fear. Dastardly fear keeps me from expressing myself by saying,

if I wear my fluorescent crushed velvet jumpsuit, people will think I'm weird. Those fears may seem

similar, but they're not. The saber-tooth tiger is right here, judging by the teeth and

the smell of its breath. It isn't playing games, nor is it using mouthwash.

The jumpsuit fear, though understandable, is made up. There's no real danger.

I'm at an arts festival in a comfy chair listening to birds chirp. A man in a leopard print,

loincloth, and body paint just walked by. He's not carrying a concealed weapon. He couldn't

conceal anything in that outfit, and even if he were, he probably wouldn't shoot me over a crushed velvet jumpsuit. The worst that can happen is he'll think I'm weird. Or he won't take my ideas seriously. Or he won't invite me to play reindeer games with the other reindeer, as if I had any desire to smell like a reindeer. None of these are the end of the world. Yet, I react as if the jumpsuit

were a saber-tooth tiger. I'm scared silly by fantasies of my own making. But if I can make them,

I should unmake them too. Overcome the fear you're creating for yourself. One way to overcome fear

is to face it. I don't mean face fear by doing what I'm afraid of. I'm way too chicken for that.

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