Member-only story
How Fear Kept Me From Living My Best Life
I didn’t realize fear was running my life — until it had already stolen years I couldn’t get back
For a long time, I thought I was just careful. Cautious.
“Practical,” even. I said no to jobs, relationships, travels, and risks, and I told myself I was being smart. But the truth was far less noble.
I was afraid. And fear had quietly set the limits of my life.
It didn’t look like fear. It looked like perfectionism. It looked like indecision.
It looked like procrastination and self-sabotage. It wore so many clever disguises that I didn’t recognize it for what it was — until one night, sitting alone in my tiny apartment, I realized I had built a life around avoiding everything I wanted most.
I remember getting an acceptance letter to a writing workshop in New York.
It was a dream opportunity: two weeks with published authors, editors, and people who believed writing mattered.
I held the letter in my hands and felt my heart beat like I was being chased. And instead of going, I told myself, It’s too expensive. I can’t take the time off work. It’s not practical.
