We’re all scared of something, whether it’s snakes, rejection or a wild boar attack. NPR’s Invisibilia podcast takes a look why we fear things, how we deal with it, and in the end offers up a formula to keep in mind the next time you’re afraid of doing something.
Picture: Madeleine Holland/Flickr
Invisibilia goes into a bunch of the reasons why we have fear, before eventually landing on the story of Jason Comely, who struggles with a pretty intense fear of rejection. He came up with a simple little formula to help him deal with his fear:
Fear = Thinking + Time. Take either one of those things away, thinking or time, and you cannot get fear.
Obviously, it’s not a foolproof magic formula that will help you get over anything, but it’s a great reminder when you find yourself overwhelmed by fear. Check out the whole Invisibilia podcast for more insights.
Fearless [NPR]
Comments
6 responses to “Get Over Your Fears By Remembering This Formula”
Logic is flawed. When someone sneaks up and says “boo!” You scream instantly. Fear has grabbed you without time, especially without thinking.
I would consider that reaction fear. Something happens then a reaction happen.
They fear OP speaks of has a situation that has never happen. eg would be i have a fear of spiders but no spider is currently near me.
To expand on the logic would be to address a few questions.
1. Am i fearful of someone scaring me in the future. (thinking) (time)
2. Am i fearful of spiders in the future. (thinking) (time)
3. If someone scared me would i be scared. (reaction)
4. if someone dropped a spider on me would i be scared. (reaction)
5. If i wasn’t scared of spiders would someone dropping a spider on me be scary.
To extrapolate:
Fear – Time = Thinking
and
Fear – Thinking = Time
Dat algebra.
Fear = Thinking + Time.
Solving for Time:
Time = Fear – Thinking
Hence, we can add more time by increasing fear or decreasing thinking.
Time for a nap to increase my time.
Where does LH get this rubbish from?
Does anyone remember any advice on LifeHacker which is worse than this?