I often ask people to think: What if fear was just a feeling, not a fact?

This comes as a shock to most people, but you change your feelings all the time, and changing your fearful feelings is no different. When you have a fearful thought, that thought creates a feeling in your body, and that feeling dictates your actions.

If we can interrupt the space between the thought and the action—the feeling—we can transform our fear into courage.
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I’m going to teach you—right now—how you can quickly interrupt the cycle of thought to feeling to action, so you can make a choice rather than a knee-jerk reaction.

1. Think of something you are afraid of. (e.g. asking your boss for a raise, flying)
2. That thought just created a constricted feeling somewhere in your body. Put your hand where that feeling is.
3. Take a deep breath into that constricted spot. On your exhalation, feel that constriction blowing up into a million pieces.
4. On your next inhalation, fill that space with a feeling of expansion, like joy or gratitude.
5. Keep breathing until that area has relaxed and the thought and feeling have passed.

You must stop your fearful thoughts from dictating your action. You have the ability, the time, and the space to move from reaction to an action of your choosing.

How did this exercise work for you? Share your thoughts below!

I hope you have an amazing week, filled with courage, and, as always, take care of you.

Love Love Love
Terri

Terri Cole is a licensed psychotherapist, transformation coach, and an expert at turning fear into freedom. Sign up for Terri’s weekly Tune Up Tips and follow her on Twitter.

*Image courtesy of twm1340.