Feel the Fear . . . and Do It Anyway

Great Book, Definitely worth the read if you're into that sort of thing. Would recommend, very easy read too

This book really got me thinking and helped me to see past my worry. This is a book to keep reading and going back to as a source for inspiration and techniques.

Even the best therapist or the best self-help book is not right for everyone. A self-help book has the advantage that, if you think it's useless, you can just throw it across the room. Don't try that with your therapist. I usually suggest browsing through the self-help sections of the bookstores and seeing what fits. In general, for panic attacks, depression and agoraphobia I suggest Claire Weekes; for obsessive-compulsive disorder, Foa and Foa; for cutters, Tracy Alderman; for addictions, anorexia and alcohol there are so may I wouldn't know where to begin. We mustn't forget the good old Internet, where I think the government NIMH sites are most reliable. In spite of its title this book is not limited to phobias. In fact Jeffers mentions that she does not treat agoraphobia. The case examples she gives are of victims of mild but disabling degrees of social anxiety, marital maladjustment and worrying. She recommends that people seek therapists and support groups. She does not mention medication and does not deal with alcohol and drug use. There are a lot of do-it-yourself exercises. She does not give any evidence to support the effectiveness of these, but I don't think she needs to. You can try them and see. Some suspension of disbelief is called for. She does not use statistics or cite experimental work. She recommends Norman Vincent Peale's "Power of Positive Thinking", Louise Hay's "You Can Heal Yourself" and Maxwell Maltz's "Psychocybernetics" as well as the works of Victor Frankl, Rollo May and Jung. Her theoretical basis comes at the end of the book and is quite interesting but is not essential to the usefulness of the book It is psychodynamic and somewhat Jungian. Jeffers divides the mind into a "higher self" and a "chatterbox" and we are supposed to be able to call on a "Universal Energy" to help us ignore the Chatterbox and get into touch with the Higher Self.

Really transforming and also enlightening. In a way, also practical and useful for working on yourself. I will go for her other books and workbooks, and tools.

Well, I must confess that years ago I was lead to a class after the love of my life passed away suddenly. Just when I thought I would survive and become the single parent our 7 year old son needed, I was laid off from my job. The fear I felt paralyzed me. My former employer offered me the opportunity to take classes to help with my job search. One happened to be titled “Feel The Fear and Beyond”. The instructor was a kind and slightly familiar looking woman. She had compassion and kindness throughout her beautiful being. Slowly I began to “Do it anyway” and was able to move clear across country and find a beautiful place for our dear, sweet son. It all happened perfectly - until my son graduated high school and went off to college. Unfortunately, I had let go of the valuable lessons in this book. I couldn’t handle the deaths of my sister, my uncle, my dad and finally my mom. I went into such a deep depression that, although I put on a good show, I wasn’t functioning at all. I didn’t “wake up” until a check bounced at the bank because I had no more money in the bank. Thankfully, the Father helped me sell my house. But my sister became seriously ill with a heart condition. I flew to her bedside and then the pandemic hit. She recovered but I sank into a hole I couldn’t climb out of. Yet, one day a gift from above came!! The updated Feel The Fear and do it anyway!! I don’t know exactly what my future will be but I do KNOW that I CAN HANDLE IT!! This time I won’t let go but will keep moving forward.

Loving it so far

Man. How do you rate a book that steadily devolves from five stars down to one star? This starts out as a five star book. The first few chapters of this book have probably altered my world view permanently. Here's the gist of what really hit home for me: At the heart of every fear we have is one single fear: "I can't handle it." This is an absolute revelation, at least to me, because it means that there is one reliable (though still not easy) formula to be used for overcoming fear: convince yourself that you can handle it. She goes on to explain that the more we do things we're afraid of, thus proving to ourselves that we CAN handle danger, uncertainty, loss, loneliness, etc., the more we can feel confident that we will be able to handle similar experiences in the future. In other words, facing our fears is something we can practice and get better at, even if we can never completely obliterate fear from our lives. She goes on to talk about decision making. Decision making often induces fear because we're scared that if we make the wrong decision it can have disastrous consequences. She suggests that instead of thinking of a decision in terms of a "right choice" and a "wrong choice," we think of them simply as different choices, and that with the right attitude, we can experience growth and fulfillment in our lives regardless of which choice we make. She points out how even in horrible circumstances (losing a job, being diagnosed with cancer, losing a loved one), we are given tremendous opportunities to experience personal growth, and it gives us confidence to emerge triumphant from difficult circumstances. All great, great advice that I will definitely take to heart. She then goes on to talk about positive affirmations, achieving balance in life, choosing to love those who we feel have wronged us. This is where the book started to take a turn for the worse. I actually agreed with a lot of what she was saying. I don't deny that it's good to surround yourself with supportive people. I agree that it's good to identify goals in our lives and work towards them. But ... read the summary of this book: "Are you afraid of making decisions . . . asking your boss for a raise . . . leaving an unfulfilling relationship . . . facing the future? Whatever your fear, here is your chance to push through it once and for all. In this enduring guide to self-empowerment, Dr. Susan Jeffers inspires us with dynamic techniques and profound concepts that have helped countless people grab hold of their fears and move forward with their lives." Around Chapter 3 (only 15% into the book!), Jeffers starts veering pretty far away from the subject of facing your fears. A book should not be marketed as "Learn to face your fears!" if the majority of the book is only tangentially related to that subject. And then there was chapter 11. Allow me to post an excerpt from chapter 11: "I believe that what all of us are really searching for is this divine essence within ourselves. When we are far from our Higher Self, we feel what Roberto Assagioli has so aptly called 'Divine Homesickness.' When you are feeling this sense of being lost, or off course, the thing to do to find your way home again is simply to use the rools that will align you with your Higher Self--and thus allow the good feelings to flow once again." This is the point at which, in my mind, the book became a one star book. In summary, I think this book idea would have made an excellent essay or pamphlet. The first two chapters were invaluable. The rest were filler.

Loved reading this. Book. So manybtake aways. I have made so many notes to work upon myself. Feel the fear and do it anyway. We fear so much in our lives. Life is not meant to be fearful. Life is meant to be lived.

Really a good book!

Incrível como a autora cria uma linguagem simples e fundamentada para nos fazer entender, transpor e transformar nossas emoções e visão de mundo frente as incertezas da vida.

Ich habe das Buch in einer vorherigen Ausgabe von 2009 gelesen. Ich war damals ein Angsthase und wollte viel loswerden. Das Buch hat mir echt geholfen! Bis heute erinnere ich mich an das Buch und habe es schon drei Mal verschenkt. In meinem Blog empfehle ich es. Was hatte mir besonders geholfen: 1. Der Kern der Angst ist, dass man Angst hat, mit den Konsequenzen nicht umgehen zu können. Aber bei den meisten Ängsten sind die Konsquenzen nur eingebildet oder bei weiten nicht so schlimm. Mantra: I can handle it. 2. Es wird eine Art Zielematrix darin beschrieben, wie man aus der Abhängigkeit rauskommt, wenn man sich zu sehr von einer Sache abhängig (im Buch eine Frau von ihrem Ehepartner... im realen Leben bspw. viele Menschen von Erfolg in ihrem Job). Die Zielematrix schreibe ich bis heute jedes Jahr für mich neu. Danke Susan!!

This is a TRULY LIFE-CHANGING BOOK! Everyone on the planet should read this and put into action the great advice in it. I wouldn't be the person I am today without it! I have bought other books from the author and they're great too!

I see mixed reviews for this book but I credit the author for helping reshape my thinking. I read it at the age of 23. I had just quit a job in PR that had completely dominated my life for 2 years. I had a significant amount of cash in the bank, lived at home, was single and was essentially free from any responsibility. Family suggested I take some time off to date or travel, try living in another city, or buy a home here. Everyone kept telling me how I had the world in the palm of my hand, but I was completely frozen, depressed, and terrified to make any decision. My confidence was at a low, I felt like a failure and my friends had all but disappeared after years of choosing my job over them. Then I read this book, suggested to me by one of my few remaining friends. It was a quick, simple read but you get the real impact by reading it a second, or third time. So many areas helped me reshape my thinking. Her question of "do you know someone in your life who think of as fearless?" resonated with me. Helping me understand that everyone feels fear and it's a person's interpretation of fear that makes all the difference, really hit home. Also encouraging me to view my life from a third person's point of view - like reading a book - really sprung me in to action. Taking away the expectation of a specific outcome to 'read on' motivated me to start dating... a lot! I detached myself from the outcome and just put things in to action. It was liberating, and I met an amazing guy (several actually, but one stuck:). I'm now 31 and I use the lessons from this book, and Susan's book Embracing Uncertainty, everyday. I public speak regularly, I'm bolder in my dealings with people, I take financial and career risks, all with the confidence that I can handle whatever result may come of my actions. How do I know I can handle what comes my way? Because I've handled everything that's ever come my way in life. This book helped me realize that. If you can take one or two lessons from a counselling book, it's worth a read. I promise, this one will give you many more than that!