What If Fear is Just Suppressed Excitement?
I recently came across a quote that stopped me: What if fear is just suppressed excitement?
I mean…that’s a reframe. And you know I love a good reframe.
This got me thinking… What if fear isn’t something to avoid—but something to pay attention to?
What if it shows up right before we grow?
Fear can be debilitating. For me, it can lead to full-on paralysis—my avoider tendencies taking center stage.
But lately, I’ve been experimenting with something different. Instead of asking: What if this goes wrong? I ask: What if this is the moment right before something shifts?
Because when I really look at it… Most of my fears aren’t facts. They’re stories. Old ones. Learned ones.
And not always true ones.
hen I question them—even a little—they start to lose their grip.
Questioning your beliefs can open up your perspective—and help you see that fear is often more illusion than truth.
Try asking yourself:
Is all this naysaying, doomsday-speak in my head really true?
How does this belief serve me?
Does this belief support me in going after my dreams or playing small?
When you directly question your fears like this, you’ll begin to recognize how they were formed.
Fearful narratives are often learned in early childhood or developed as a way to protect us. But recognizing where they came from helps you separate them from who you really are. So you can say, “Oh so THAT's how you got here”.
This is a critical realization as it separates your fears from your true self. Because your fears are not you. You just happen to have them. We all do.
And when you unpack them, they start to feel a little less powerful. Like the Great and Powerful Oz—just a man behind a curtain. Not so scary, right?
So here’s another question: If nothing could go wrong…what would you do?
Yeah. Same.
And maybe that’s the point.
Maybe fear isn’t something to eliminate. Maybe it’s something to get curious about.
Because something better—something bigger than you expected—might be waiting on the other side.
