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Introduction

Former U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt once said in a speech, "We have nothing to fear but fear itself." If you take the statement literally, it doesn't really make sense because you can't really be afraid of fear. What Roosevelt was trying to say is that fear is a crippling emotion that can hold back nations and individuals from achieving greatness. In that sense, the consequences of fear can be terrifying.

Good fear vs. bad fear

Fear is a strong emotion, an instinctive reaction that we're endowed with to ensure the survival of our species. It’s also a primeval instinct that we see in animals as well. As human civilizations became more complex and advanced, so did our fears become more varied and compounded. The caveman in prehistoric times wasn't worrying about the financial risks of taking out a second mortgage or making a career change. His primary goal revolved around one thing - survival.

Our current fears stem from the same core instinct but in comparison to our earliest ancestors, are much less of a threat. Oftentimes, rather than help us survive in the modern world, they hinder our ability to lead our best possible lives.

Now, this book is in no way trying to underplay or belittle your fears. Your fears are very valid. In fact, some actions should be tempered with a little bit of fear and caution. However, some fears can get blown out of proportion and take over your life. In this case, you need to pay attention.

Your fears could cause you to miss out on amazing opportunities that could change your life. Letting fear control you could be the reason you feel stifled, lost, and demotivated. Your fears, rather than protecting you, could be destroying your chances for happiness and success.

For example, the fear of swimming in shark-infested waters is a good fear. The fear of quitting a job that you hate and that offers no chance for advancement is a bad fear. It can hold you back from pursuing your true passion and showcasing your skills. It's these types of fears that this book will help you address.

This book is going to help you identify 7 types of fear that could be limiting your ability to achieve success These are fears that could hinder your care advancement or hold you back from building strong, healthy relationships. They can be the roadblocks to finding happiness and fulfillment.

Here are these 7 most common fears and a few tips on how to overcome them.

1. Fear of Risk

Risk is related to a perceived loss resulting from an action. Oftentimes, there's also a potential gain but we tend to magnify the loss while minimizing the gains. The fear of taking risks is a very strong primal fear related to our survival instinct where our prehistoric ancestors were surrounded by peril. Taking risks could mean getting eaten by wild animals or some other horrible death.

This fear remains very strong in us and is the first emotion that overcomes us when we think of taking important action.

How it holds you back

Let's say you want to start your own business. You have a great idea for a useful product or service that's scalable. There's an audience for it and your initial market research tells you it will be in demand. You're very excited. Then, the fear of risk kicks in and your mind starts bombarding you with 'what if?’

What if the idea's not so good after all? What if you take out a loan and can't repay it? What if the product doesn't sell? What if the market collapses? What if there's a nuclear war and you lose everything?

The 'what if' questions typically escalate into gloom and doom scenarios until the fear paralyzes you into inaction. Realistically, if there's a nuclear war, everybody's going to be out of business, aren't they? This is how the concept of risk can really play on your fear of loss.

Your fear ends up holding you back from, doing something that can have some real benefits for you. So, you ditch the idea and decide to stay on in a job you hate that's stifling your potential and ambition. You convince yourself that being miserable is safer than failing miserably!

Now, consider the alternative: you realistically assess the risks involved, plan for them and start your own business. You embark on an exciting journey when you become your own boss, take control of your life, and grow a super successful business. This is just one example of how fear of risk can hold you back from great things.

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There comes a time in everyone’s lives when they know they are due for a change. Perhaps they have recently come to realize that the path they have taken is not the path they want to stay on, and they are seeking out ways that they can begin to make a difference in their lives, and maybe even make a difference in the world around them.

We all want to do something that matters. What that is can be very different from person to person, but it remains true that for the most part, we are beings with the drive to work toward goals larger than ourselves. That is what veganism is really about.

Living a vegan lifestyle can mean a number of things, depending on the person who is undergoing the transition. For one thing, it means being aware of the consequences of your choices. It means learning more about the way the world works, and the ethical stances of most popular corporations. It can even mean giving up your favorite foods in order to embrace a more non-violent lifestyle so that you can ease the guilt you may feel in supporting practices financially that you do not support in your mind or heart.

Whatever being vegan may mean for you personally, it is an important choice and one that can come with several complications. That is why the Going Vegan: A Complete Guide to a Cruelty Free Lifestyle is so beneficial. This book will take you on a journey of understanding so that the vegan lifestyle no longer seems so daunting.

By following the easy tips and tricks in this guide, you will be closer than ever to living the life you have always wanted. If you want to go vegan, but you have questions and concerns, then this is the book for you.

Going vegan isn’t just a diet choice. It is an entire lifestyle change. When someone goes vegan, that applies not only to the things that they eat, but also the products they use. To be vegan means devoting yourself to the liberation of animals and believing that practices that cause harm to our animal companions is a very needless and primitive thing.

Vegans prefer instead to support businesses that promote ethical treatment of animals. They want to allow room for the world to create better practices that take the needs and welfare of animals into consideration. They use products, like make up and hair care products, that have not been tested on animals. They don’t eat foods that are made from animals or animal byproducts, such as milk or eggs or other dairy.

This can be a huge choice to make. Going vegan is about far more than just a diet choice. It is a change in lifestyle. It means going for products that most of the time end up being far more expensive than commercially made and mass produced items that do not take animal welfare into consideration. A vegan supports the idea that we can build an economy without killing animals and exploiting them as resources. And it can change everything in their lives if they are truly devoted to this cause.

Don’t let that intimidate you. While it may sound like a lot of work, going vegan is easy once you have made the switch. Any change in lifestyle is an adjustment. Going vegan simply requires more research to be made and, at times, a little bit more of an investment in certain products.

But to those who are passionate believers in supporting ethical treatment of animals, or who simply want to be more environmentally conscious or alter their diets, it is a simple switch. Going vegan can even be seen as a political stance. There are vegans out there working to change the laws to favor ethical treatment of animals, and there is promise that some things may change for the better. However, it is a gradual change and not one that a whole lot of people find important. That is why every choice we make can make a difference. Money talks, and in supporting places that are aligned with our ideals and moral codes, we can begin to slowly shift the principles that companies adopt in order to favor the majority. And that’s a great win for vegans!

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Introduction

Here's a brief scenario for you to consider. Jeff, a young career professional, comes home from work, has dinner, watches some TV then sits back and spends a few minutes reflecting on his day. His self-talk runs along the following lines: "What a crappy day! Everything that could possibly go wrong did… Not my fault, though; my coworkers suck. They can't follow instructions or do anything right. Not to mention my monster boss! I hate my job… I need to look for a new one… life sucks!"

His thoughts are interrupted by the phone ringing. It's a friend calling to chat. "Are you busy with something right now?" the friend asks. Our hero replies, "Nah, just sitting back and doing some self-reflection. Life really sucks, man!"

If this is the general idea about self-reflection, it's no wonder that so many people think life sucks! This scenario is just so wrong. It's not self-reflection in any way, shape, or form. Thankfully, real self-reflection is completely different and it's good for you.

Let's be honest. We’re good at analyzing the flaws and weaknesses of others and blaming circumstances that we see as out of our control. However, we're hesitant to confront our own shortcomings and mistakes. We avoid confronting our emotions and fears or identifying patterns in our behavior that could be holding us back. Therefore, self-reflection is a powerful game-changer.

What is Self-Reflection?

Self-reflection is the process of looking into yourself to better understand your thought process, behaviors, strengths, and weaknesses. It's not a negative exercise by any means but an honest exploration of yourself, which makes you aware of some negative issues that need to be addressed.

Self-reflection is an intentional process, meaning that you don’t do it randomly on the bus home from work or as you’re walking down the street. Of course, you could do that in theory but it would probably be more of an aimless jumble of wandering thoughts rather than deep introspection. There can be too many distractions and interruptions.

Making the intention and making time for self-reflection is essential. This prepares you mentally for an exercise in deep, honest thought and gets your brain into focus mode. You should never be rushed or open to distractions or interruption. Think of self-reflection as a form of meditation and you'll get the idea.

Like meditation, self-reflecting should take place in quiet, relaxed surroundings. There's no set time limit. The exercises can be as long or as short as you choose. Daily self-reflection may only require a few minutes while weekly or monthly self-reflection may take some time. Some people also find it helpful to keep a journal where they jot down their key thoughts and findings but this isn't mandatory.

Why is Self-Reflection Important?

The simple process of immersing yourself in honest introspection has some amazingly powerful benefits which include:

It leads to greater self-awareness and a better understanding of why you’re where you are in your life right now. More importantly, it helps you identify what you need to be doing to get where you want to be.
It allows you to identify and set clear goals.
It helps you assess your goals regularly and modify or change them if you need to.
It helps you recognize your priorities and the obstacles that could be causing you to lose sight of them.
It helps you get in touch with your emotions and identify those that could be holding you back.
It allows you to identify your weaknesses and work on them.
It helps you recognize your limitations and how they can be overcome.
It enables you to acknowledge and take responsibility for mistakes.
It gives you more control over your life and the direction in which it's heading.
It's a great way to reduce stress and release repressed emotions.
It brings inner peace and mental tranquility.

So, how exactly do you practice self-reflection? Just follow these 10 powerful methods. They'll ease you into the practice and develop it into a consistent habit. Over time, you'll master the art of self-reflecting and be able to practice it on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.

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Introduction

Everyone has been there. Your to-do list is a mile long. You sit down to get to work, but your brain just doesn't want to turn on. The more you try to force it, the more your attention wanders.

For some, this is just an every once in a while type problem. For others, it can be an all-day, everyday struggle. The modern world is full of distractions. Even if you love what you do, there is always something more interesting you could be doing with your day. You live in a world where the next notification is just a second or two away. All of your devices are constantly begging for your attention.

So how do you cut through the digital clutter, overlook the flashing lights, and make your brain get to work? Improving your mental focus is as simple as "practice makes perfect." By creating a clear plan and establishing healthy habits, even the most distractable mind can cut through the fog and be productive.

1. Identify Clear Goals

The first step is to identify what you need your focus to be on. When you don't have a clearly defined goal, your mind will wander. Give your attention something to use as an anchor.

Sounds simple, right?. Sometimes defining goals is simple. Report A is due to the boss by 2 pm, which is the morning's only goal. But when you don't have a hard deadline for every item on your mile-long list, defining the goal can get complicated.

Make a process that you can use every day to help keep that to-do list organized.

- First, identify your priorities. Write down that to-do list. Whether it's handwritten or digital, the important thing is seeing everything laid out in front of you.

- Now that you have your priorities straight, put them in order of importance.

Tackle the most urgent ones first. The idea is to get those tasks that are the very highest priorities taken care of before anything else can get the chance to distract you.

- Make sure that everything you add to your to-do list gets separated into small steps. Then set aside small blocks of time to focus only on the specific things on your list. Set a timer if it helps you stay on track.

- Don't overextend yourself. That two-mile-long list of goals for the day isn't helping the matter at all. Long lists don't often get finished. So just put some of those less urgent things on the shelf. You can tackle them another day when they are more pressing.

Overextending yourself or not setting realistic expectations can do real damage to your focus over time. When you set unrealistic goals and then fail to meet them over and over, you are training your brain to expect failure.

Instead of a two-mile-long list, limit yourself to just the highest priority items. Remember that once you get those high priorities done, you can always come back and set a new list of goals.

1. Get Rid of Distractions

Eliminating distractions is a vital part of preparing your mind to be able to focus. Distractions in modern times are complicated and are a large part of the problem. Whether it's the notifications on your phone or something in your office, it can be impossible to pay attention to the task at hand.

So what might be distracting you? To get rid of it, you have to identify what it is.

Physical Distractions

You can easily anticipate and plan for physical distractions in advance. Often it's just a matter of having a consistent daily routine. Take the time to anticipate problems and solve them before they can affect your focus.

- Hunger

Always realizing you are hungry when you are trying to get started? Don't skip breakfast.

Even if you aren't the type to start your day with a meal, you can plan ahead and keep an easy-to-grab snack in your work area. Eat before you try to get started.

- Temperature

When you are too cold or too hot, it quickly becomes challenging to keep your brain focused on a computer screen. Ideally, you can control your environment's temperature and find that sweet temperature spot before it's time to get started. In reality, though, you might not have any control at all. You can still plan ahead.
Work in a chronically cold office environment? Keep a sweater or light jacket on hand to put on when you get a chill. Regularly feel way warmer than your co-workers? Keep a fan at your desk.

- Noise

Noise is another environmental element you might not always be able to control. It could be phones ringing at another desk or annoying music coming through the shared wall. Some individuals are quite easily distracted by any sounds, while others can tune it all out at will.