Dear Joshua,
My main other focus right now is to work on reducing my fear at work. I mentioned it in a conversation with my sister who pointed out that this has been a theme for the last 20 years (or more). It would most certainly be a big success to reduce that to the level of "no big deal." You said things would start to move when I reduce that, so now I'm doubly motivated (not quite the same as actually implementing, but on the right track).
With love and appreciation,
Kate
Dear Kate,
All of your fear around work is irrational, meaning the source of the fear can't kill you. Also, the fear is limiting and it is what is keeping you apart from your goals and dreams. The reason you feel fear is because you're insecure and the reason you're insecure is because you feel fear. It is a loop. If you felt no fear, you would not feel insecure and therefore you would not feel fear.
If you felt confident, you would not feel fear. So then, the goal is to move from a state of insecurity to a state of confidence. How is this done? The first step is to realize that your fears are derived from your feelings of insecurity. Your insecurity is based on your feelings and beliefs that you are not worthy to be working in this profession. The second step is to replace your fear with love.
Imagine that you had a job that you felt was beneath you. Imagine you did some menial job that did not utilize your intellect. You might feel no insecurity in that job, because the job was so easy. You would not care if you lost the job, because the job was beneath you and you know you could find another job quickly. It's just that your perception of this job you actually have and your perceived qualifications seems to you to be mismatched. However, you are a match to your job, you are worthy of your job, you are capable of excelling at your job, it's just that your fear is limiting your success at your job.
Fear is always limiting. You fear failure because you feel unworthy. The job proves to the world that you are smart, you are successful and you are worthy. The secret is that you don't feel worthy and if you were to get fired from this job, the rest of the world would know your little secret. Guess what? Everyone who matters thinks you're worthy and they don't care about your job. It doesn't make you special in their eyes. You are special because you are already special and the job makes no difference. You are simply perceiving that the job is an important aspect of who you are. It is not. It is a crutch. It is a false prop. It is not who you are. In fact, because of your approach to this job, it is a complete lie.
It does not have to be a lie. It could match who you really are if you would just approach it from a stance of love rather than a stance of fear. Give up the fear because it is false. Embrace the love because it is truth. Love is the truth of who you really are and you can do anything in love. When you do something from the position of love (fearlessness) you engage the forces of the universe. When you work in fear, you're on your own and this is why you have little success. Leverage the forces of the universe by showing your courage.
We have said this many times before. There is a way for you to do this job that is unique. You have unique talents and qualities. You know more about the forces of the universe than anyone in your firm. Use what you know. Lean into your job with love and courage. Release the fear because it is false. Understand that you must do things your way, with love, without fear, and on your own terms. You must find a way to make this job fun.
Once you have figured out a way to make it fun, you will have engaged the powers of the universe to do all of the work for you. It does not matter the style or the performance level of anyone else in the firm. They are living in their universe and you are living in yours. Their universe does not have to affect yours. Everything in your universe happens for you.
Give up your fear of what others will think if you were to lose your job. You cannot lose when you act in love. You cannot lose when you act upon inspiration. You cannot lose when you leverage universal powers. You must win. But you can only win by having fun.
Make every decision based in love. Do not care about yourself or the firm, care about your clients. Give them your love, even if it seems to be counter to what everyone else is thinking or doing. Provide value by making decisions based in love. If the decisions are love-based, they cannot be wrong. If the decisions are fear-based, they cannot be beneficial in the long run. Do everything, feel everything, say everything based in love, not fear.
If fear pops up, realize it is false and replace it with a loving thoughts. This is the only thing you have to do. Let this be your challenge. Let this be your approach to your work. Let this be your only work.
Joshua
