The Power of Creativity \(Book 1\): Learning How to Build Lasting Habits, Face Your Fears and Change Your Life pdfdrive com

How to Conquer This Fear
To overcome your fear of success, adopt the Kasparov mind-set. Force yourself
to  behave  like  you’re  full  of  great  ideas;  you  know  what  you’re  doing,  and
you’ve already won.
If  you’re  working  on  a  novel  and  you’re  afraid  of  what  will  happen  when
you  achieve  a  breakthrough,  ask  yourself,  “How  would  a  great  novelist  and
storyteller write this?”

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If  you’re  composing  a  track  for  an  album  and  the  hook  scares  you,  ask
yourself, “How would a world-class musician play this?”
Be bold with your answers. Push past that place of discomfort and fear until
you reach a place where your success is inevitable.
Offer  no  quarter  for  self-doubt.  When  you  enter  into  the  mental  zone  that
belongs to the victorious, you won’t fear success; you’ll relish it.
Seizing Victory
Each morning when I sit down in front of the blank page, I feel the heavy paws
of fear on my shoulders pressing me down, his cold breath in my ear, his raspy
voice telling me, “You’re not good enough.”
I step forward one word, one sentence, one paragraph, one idea at a time. I
force myself to press “Publish” because this is a war I must win. Then, I reach
out to others and show them what I’ve done.
When they don’t believe me, I show them my wounds.
Do you know what happened when I did this for the first time?
Nothing.
Our  would-be  audience  is  more  concerned  with  the  problems  in  their  lives
than anything you and I are too afraid to say or to finish.
The problem isn’t what people will think of our work or that we’re damaged
or  too  ambitious.  It’s  convincing  our  would-be  audience  that  our  big  ideas  are
worth their time.
Go to war against your fears.
If victory were easy, the conquest wouldn’t be worth it, but your struggle and
frustrations are simply opportunities in disguise. You will unmask them for what
they are during your bold march forward.
What  you  must  never  do  is  retreat  because  filling  a  blank  page  or  a  virgin
canvas is too much work.
What  you  must  never  do  is  to  let  difficult  moments  overwhelm  you  and
prevent you from seeking out new ways to improve your craft.
What you must never do is quit on a big idea because it’s more elusive than

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you thought.
So create, damn it.
Don’t hold back.
And put your ideas out there.
Because each idea you fire is an arrow into the belly of the beast.