overcoming-fear
I have tagged 2 blog posts with overcoming-fear:
Tracks of Personal Growth: A Journey Through Norwegian Frost and Public Speaking Fears
Day in, day out, rumbling across Norwegian landscapes painted with frost, I use this train as my sanctuary; as my mobile observatory, the promise of dawn melting into the cerulean sky, it washes over the argent fields that lay bare under the skeleton birches. Here, my own silence melds harmoniously with the gentle hum of the tracks beneath, the train's patterned rhythm always accompanying my thoughts. But today, it was also going to be a witness to a personal story of mine, a tale of overcoming a significant fear.
A while ago, the idea of voluntarily positioning myself in the center of attention, entrusting my unfiltered thoughts to curious ears would result in my mind spiraling into a pit of gut-churning, cold-sweat-inducing dread, was unfathomable. The fear of public speaking, or Glossophobia as it is scientifically known, gnawed at me.
It all changed one notable day. I was selected to present an important assignment at university. School corridors echoed a countdown that didn't lead to excitement but to a moment of anticipated terror – standing alone in a battleground armed with powerpoints and pointers. That morning, the one degree winter chill lingering outside did nothing to freeze the turmoil that played out within me.
Seconds melted into minutes, minutes morphed into an hour. An arena filled with eager eyes and sharp ears lay ahead of me. In that moment, I decided to treat this as an instance of catharsis, to enunciate not just the assignment at hand but to also bellow out the fear trapped within me.
Heart pounding like a war drum, I began. I told myself that every eye that bore into me bore not out of judgment but out of genuine interest in the knowledge I was about to impart. I allowed myself to not dread a mistake, embraced it as an opening for humor, for genuineness.
Slowly, the knots of anxiety started to untangle, my voice no longer an insignificant whisper but a confident statement in the vast expanse of the hall. My words stopped being the unknown terrain I tread with trepidation and became the familiar streets I'd known all my life. As I took a final look at the room, I no longer saw an intimidating crowd but a group of people just like me.
From that day forward, the once terrifying shadows of public speaking, gradually retreated, replaced by self-confidence and the joy of shared knowledge. I embraced this monster I'd constructed out of my fears, only to realize it was only a harmless creature that just wanted to be understood.
Just like this frost-etched morning slowly making room for the soothing warmth of daylight, my fears melted away, allowing my true self to bask in newfound courage and strength. A personal tale about overcoming a fear, yes, but also a reminder that fears are like winter too - chilling, yes, but bracing and beautiful, a prelude to warmth and growth.
Today, as I write, nestled in the comfortable hum of this train, the outside world washed in tinges of winter's white, I can't help but ponder upon such poignant analogies life dishes out - how one must embrace the cold to appreciate the warmth, how courage is nothing but confronting fear itself. And so continues my journey, on train tracks and tracks of personal growth.
From Icy Windows to Icy Fears: Navigating the Chills of Public Speaking and Global Conflict
As icicles form on the outside of my train window and the landscape wears the fresh cloak of an early winter, I find my mind steering away from the frosty views. I have recently been wrestling with a thought that induces a deep, paralyzing dread in the hearts of many, a particularly dominant fear that haunts our dreams and trails our wakeful hours - the fear of public speaking.
No words seem to capture the sheer terror of having numerous pairs of eyes fastened on you, awaiting your thoughts, your words. Your hands tremble, sweat begins to coat your skin, your heart pounds in your chest as if trying to wrangle free from its confinements. You can almost feel your credibility, your reputation hanging in the balance...yet overcoming this fear is as pressing and as challenging as surviving a bitter Norwegian winter.
These thoughts were stirred up in the chill of the morning as I read through a news article. A world away from freezing Norway, a different kind of chill is descending - not from the cold but from conflict. Those distant from the horror can only read and imagine the growing dread and desperation of trapped civilians, their homes in ashes, their tomorrows uncertain.
Such scenarios of fear and terror, be it standing on a stage or in the midst of conflict, seem worlds apart. Yet they have an unusual similarity - they are both fears that can be overcome; one by sheer determination and strength of character, the other by the collective will of nations to impose peace over war.
The key to mastering fears is understanding the fear itself. To go beyond the surface, to delve deeper into the underbelly of this dreaded feeling is a step towards overcoming it. In public speaking, the fear exists before and during the speech, but dissipates when the ordeal is over. Similar, in an eerie way, to the clamour of conflict - where fear permeates before and during the terror, but would cease when peace prevails.
Striding towards the stage of public speaking, it is essential to take a step back and analyse this fear. Dissect it, familiarise yourself with it, know it inside and out. Only then can you tackle it head on. Use your fear as a weapon, as fuel. Let the fear of messing up propel you to prepare better. Let the fear of stuttering inspire you to practice more. Transform this intimidating negative into a motivational positive.
Just as the turmoil in the Middle East solicits us to introspect, to evaluate the consequences of war over dialogue, similarly the fear of public speaking compels us to seek out our weaknesses and work on them. To grow, to learn and to evolve into better versions of ourselves.
As my train pulls into the station at Oslo, I'm left with the stark realization that fear, be it of public speaking or of a volatile situation, can only be mended by facing it, head on. Beneath the canvas of a gloomy morning, hope stubbornly persists: for there's always spring following the harshest of winters, and there is growth waiting beyond a nerve-wrecking speech. Real strength, I believe, lies in accepting our fears, facing them, and finding a way to brave them, whether on a stage addressing an audience or in a conflict-ridden land searching for peace.