Do What You Fear (as long as it isn't reckless and stupid)
fear of a little cat by wolfgangfoto CC BYND 2.0 One of the best ways to grow emotionally strong and to develop self-discipline is to do what scares you. I don’t mean that you need to learn how to hang glide or tame lions. I don’t mean for you to do things that are frightening for everyone for a good reason . I myself do not feel particularly drawn to the idea of (for example) taking research equipment into a burning caldera or hunting Burmese pythons in the Everglades. I could imagine myself feeling a little fear in the moment if I found myself doing one of these things, and that would affect my reactions. Nevertheless, this is not what I mean. I do not mean chasing down a random, possibly dangerous, situation that will probably cause you to feel fear. What I mean is this: there is some non-dangerous (probably) activity that you could try, but you keep putting it off. You don’t delay out of boredom, as with dishes and tax returns. You don’t put it off because,...