Overcoming the Fear of Returning to School

by Gabrielle Loomis

Are you fearful about returning to school or continuing your education?

Read on for 3 steps to transform your Fear into Fuel for your
Future!

Have you ever found yourself being really excited about an
opportunity, such as a new job or going back to school only to find that
excitement eventually drops into fear? Are you wanting to make some
significant change in your life, but your fears hold you back?
When fear shows up in our lives, many of us believe it is showing us
that we’ve made the wrong decision or chosen the wrong path. We
allow our fears to shake our confidence, doubt our intuition and create
inner turmoil.

This week as I contemplated a big decision to move to a different part
of town, I was reminded of the enormous potential fear has to keep us
stuck. Of course, that’s not really what fear is trying to do. It’s not
trying to keep you stuck in a job or career or relationships that’s
unfulfilling, it’s trying to keep you safe. We all have a very primitive,
albeit powerful, part of our brain which is programmed for safety. And
anytime something appears to be threatening to our physical or
emotional well being, it triggers a process to stop us in our tracks, stay
put and play it safe.

Even though we have evolved eons since our primitive ancestors,
certain parts of the brain have not and so our brain is still protecting us
as if we’re running from wild animals on a daily basis! And the thing
that most people don’t realize is that this is also true of thoughts and
emotions. When we contemplate things such as going back to school,
it triggers this response inside that says “Oh no, what if...”. So with
this as the backdrop, the first step to transforming your fear into fuel is
to:

Expect Fear

That’s right, expect it! Fear will never go away. You will never not
have any fear whatsoever. Athletes, people in the public eye and
other experts in their field will tell you that they still feel fear when they
take the stage for instance. Fear is a normal part of our nervous
system so rather than decide that because you have fear, something
is wrong or this might not be the right decision, expect fear to show
up. It actually has something really important to share with you. Are
you ready to know what that is?

That’s the second step:

Acknowledge Fear

When fear shows up it is information. It’s letting you know that there is
something inside of you that needs attention. Some part of you is not
feeling safe and is most likely telling yourself really unpleasant things
such as “I know I’m not smart enough”, “I can’t handle this”, “I’m not
good enough”, “I’m too old” and the list goes on and on! So now is the
time to be very inquisitive about what is going on inside the magical
place that is you and ask yourself questions such as:
     “What am I most afraid of about going back to school?”
     “What do I believe is true about myself?”

What you will most likely find if you take the time to explore, is a whole
bunch of limiting thoughts and beliefs about yourself which mostly
stem from past experience.

If you’ve ever failed at something or felt rejected or not smart enough,
this is the time when that will come back to you. And you’ll remember
it as if it happened yesterday! You can begin by reminding yourself
that this isn’t the 3rd grade when so and so teacher embarrassed you
in front of class or whatever that painful experience might have been.
This is also a really good time to practice some of the amazing
clearing and healing techniques such as EFT, or LifeLine.

Once you have acknowledged and begun to deal with the fears of the
past, it frees you up to be fully in the present which leads to the next
step.

Embrace Fear

Now you can begin to decipher fear in terms of the present moment.
And what you will probably find is that there are things you need to do
-action steps that you need to take to prepare yourself for life after
your big decision. So you might ask yourself:

How do I need to grow myself in order to go back to school?
In what ways can I better prepare myself?
What would need to change in order for me to make this decision?

Maybe you need to create more space in your schedule or take an
introductory course to get back into the swing of things or release
some of your responsibilities so you have time to invest in yourself.
This is where you get real clear on what needs to happen in order for
you to be successful and then create a plan of action.

These three steps are how you transform Fear into Fuel for your
Future!

This is the formula I have used in my own life personally to make a
radical transformation. I went from years of struggling with jobs I
disliked and feeling unhappy to today, where I get to share my gifts
and talents with you and other women as a way to empower your
brilliance. If you would like to learn more about my journey or how you
can be supported through my programs, products and personal
coaching, please visit www.gabriellemarieloomis.com.