Does Fear Stop You?
One of the quotes from many of my videos when I’m teaching is to say out loud…
“I’m not afraid, I’m not afraid. I’m not afraid.”
For some reason, doing this seems to help push me more confidently past the moments where fear creeps in and stops me from moving forward.
We all have fears in life and in art that get us to freeze.
Coming face to face with those fears is truly the only way to understand what they are and how many we have.
In a recent video in the Art with Adele Academy I talked about this topic and challenged everyone to pick one of their fears, say it out loud and do an exercise around expressing it, whatever that looks like.
There was no judgment and no thinking around it -- just responding to it.
Throughout my art career I have had many fears, but I’ve been in this business for so long that most of those fears I don’t have any more.
I have new ones though.
Here is a list of some of the fears I listed and talked about that you might have as well:
Fear of failure.
Fear of trying something new.
Fear of rejection.
Fear of getting stuck.
Fear of being vulnerable.
Fear of the unknown.
Fear of getting started.
Fear of being judged.
Fear of criticism.
Fear of beginning.
Look how many of these fears are universal to life, not just in your art.
How we move through them or don't move through them is something we each must address in our own way.
One of my all-time favorite movies has this same theme, about how we experience fear and whether we move through it and become brave and courageous or allow it to control our lives.
The name of the movie is Defending Your Life with Meryl Streep and Albert Brooks.
Defending Your Life is a 1991 comedy about a man who finds himself on trial in the afterlife. His judges must decide whether he has overcome his fears and, thus, can move on in the universe or whether he has to be reincarnated yet again on Earth.
Every time I’ve watched this movie, which is many times, I leave inspired to be more fearless.
So…what is the one fear I named for myself in the video in the Academy that I’d like to work on now?
It’s of not having a more balanced life and instead being consumed with my passion for working and teaching.
I want to play with my grandchildren more, allow myself to sit on the front porch swing and listen to the birds.
Simple things like this.
My hope is that this blog invites you to take a pause, think for a moment about what fear you’re having and say out loud…
I’m not afraid, I’m not afraid. I’m not afraid!!!
Best of luck to you in this challenging endeavor.
* Click HERE to learn about the Art with Adele Academy.
* Click HERE to get my FREE minicourse, “Kickstart Your Abstract Painting.”
