Security is an Illusion—Especially in a Time of Fear

Posted on 06 October 2008

Fear and obsession are linked in an endless cycle of hopeless attempts to change reality

 
In a time of fear, the temptation is to try somehow to ‘cure’ the problem that you’re afraid of by focusing on its opposite. This is a mistake. The more obsessed you become with safety, the more sources of risk you will find. The more you focus on achievement, the more opportunities you will create to fear failure. The reality is that there has never been a way to ‘cure’ the ups and downs of life. The only answer lies in accepting reality and working from there.

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Technorati Tags: fear, anxiety, seeking safety, coping with uncertainty, accepting ambiguity, facing reality

This post was written by:

Carmine Coyote - who has written 286 posts on Slow Leadership.

Carmine Coyote is the founder and editor of Slow Leadership, with a career that stretches from early employment as an economist, through periods in government service, academia and several multinational companies, to retiring as CEO of a US consulting company and partner in a large business services firm. Carmine now lives in Arizona, but is British for all that.

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4 Comments For This Post

1. sambit says:
   October 7th, 2008 at 1:59 am

   When we confront danger normally we come up with the fight or flight response. It is inevitable that all of us will be fearful at sometime or other depending on the situation. The efficiency lies in finding out an appropriate response even when faced with fear. Both fight and flight could be inappropriate. The best way is to connect with others. There is a reassurance and sense of security in numbers which will help to calm the nerves and help in finding out the solution - may be you can get some suggestions you can use.I think social network provides a good outlet to tackle individual insecurity by supporting him and providing him with ideas to tackle the fear.

2. Bob says:
   October 7th, 2008 at 5:22 am

   Thank you!

   This is cycle I discuss with staff members; the pernicious results of obsession are manifest, but it takes practice and no small amount of courage not to succumb to the “cure” illusion

3. Carmine Coyote says:
   October 7th, 2008 at 8:16 am

   @sambit: Thanks for your comment, Sambit. There are many ways to help quieten fear, but too many of them are variations on ignoring or avoiding it, instead of facing up to what is causing the fear and working out whether anything can be done about it. Fear is everywhere, as is insecurity. My own view is that all avoidance tends to fail in the end. Only accepting the fear and going from there has much hope of being a long-term mode of living.

   Keep reading, my friend.

4. Carmine Coyote says:
   October 7th, 2008 at 8:16 am

   @Bob: Thanks for your response, Bob. I’m glad you found it helpful. Keep reading, my friend.

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