Comments on: Letting Go of Fear

By: 43 Memorable Posts In The Blogosphere From 2008 - Spiritual Blog

43 Memorable Posts In The Blogosphere From 2008 - Spiritual Blog — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 06:10:09 +0000

[...] Learning at Streamlined Mind 10 Things we all Must Figure Out for Ourselves at marcandangel.com Letting Go of Fear from Tom Stine How to Deal with Critics: Personal Boundaries at urbanmonk.net Being Right at [...]

By: 12 Excellent Posts from the Spiritual Blogosphere - SpiritualBlog.com

12 Excellent Posts from the Spiritual Blogosphere - SpiritualBlog.com — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 08:38:20 +0000

[...] Letting Go of Fear [...]

By: Tom Stine

Tom Stine — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 16:37:13 +0000

@Denise Thank you very much. Great to hear you had a light bulb moment. Yes, focusing on the future is essentially inviting suffering into our lives. It is a source of great pain and unhappiness. Now is all there is anyway, so why focus on a non-existent future? Glad to have you reading and visiting.

By: Denise

Denise — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 12:49:02 +0000

Just came across your website and absolutely love it. The way you explain letting go for fear is so wonderful. So many people are allowing their lives to pass by focusing on the future instead of the now. I got a lightbulb moment just reading your site. Keep up with the writing I will check back more often.

By: Tom Stine

Tom Stine — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 03:32:14 +0000

@Stephen Glad to have you as a fan. I like the question: “How am I doing right now, this very moment?” You know, as long as we are alive, we are quite likely okay. And if we aren’t alive, well, I can’t really say what then. But we are almost always just fine, right now. Thanks so much for the comments!

By: Stephen Hopson

Stephen Hopson — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 22:59:42 +0000

Tom:

This article was of big interest to me because I often talk about the value of being in the moment. Lots of times when I’m fearful, it almost always has something to do with a future that hasn’t yet happened. You’re right on the nose with that one.

How I do it is simply by asking myself aloud, “How am I doing right now, this very moment?” Lots of times I’ll realize I’m fine right then and there. it does a lot to calm my fears, whatever they might be.

Patricia Singleton of “Spiritual Journey of a Lightworker” worte an interesting article about naming your fear outloud. Saying it out loud. You said the same thing.

Very interesting ways of combating fear. It’s something all of us have dealt with.

In an article I wrote about being a motivational speaker, I told how even after hundreds of engagements, I still get butterflies before each gig. Sometimes I’ll find myself an isolated room before my speech and scream as loud as I can. I find that it calms the butterflies. Of course, I can’t exactly do that if there’s a chance that someone will think I was being murdered or something. LOL

But it works!

Nice work Tom. I’m a new fan of yours. :0

Stephen Hopson’s last blog post..End of the Week Gratitude Theme #33

By: tbiggs

tbiggs — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 01:47:09 +0000

Had a small version of this epiphany years ago. A friend and I had our own business, but we were between contracts and in debt. My first child had just been born and we were late on the bills and the rent.

Every night I was laying awake for hours. Then one night at 3am I asked myself: “Is there anything you can do about this Right Now, in the middle of the night?” I decided there wasn’t, and fell asleep a few minutes later. Lack of money never cost me any sleep again.

By: Cynthia

Cynthia — Tue, 27 May 2008 14:46:57 +0000

Very good post.

I’m making a lot of inroads in my personal development and lately, I”ve been feeling ‘stuck’ again. Mainly because I’m afraid, I will admit that. I put so much stock into the future (in regards to my health and career) that I don’t focus on the here and now and I take it for granted.

It’s funny, in some ways I can live in the here and now…when it comes to my development personally; it’s hard for me to have the mentality. It’s something that I’m struggling with hard right now.

Thank You for this insightful post!

Cynthia’s last blog post..Pontificating at a Picnic

By: Tom Stine

Tom Stine — Tue, 27 May 2008 03:35:50 +0000

@Mary Hey, cool, thanks. I will check it out.

By: Tom Stine

Tom Stine — Tue, 27 May 2008 03:17:15 +0000

@JEMi We all spend a lot of time in the past and future. As a matter of fact, I don’t think our thoughts have much to do with anything BUT the past and future. No need to think about right now. It just is. We experience it through our senses. No much to think about.

By: Mary@GoodlifeZen

Mary@GoodlifeZen — Mon, 26 May 2008 05:32:20 +0000

Hi again, my article on love and fear that I referred to earlier on has now appeared on Pick The Brain. You can find it here: http://www.pickthebrain.com/blog/7-steps-toward-love-and-away-from-fear/

By: JEMi | Tips for Life, Love, You

JEMi | Tips for Life, Love, You — Sun, 25 May 2008 12:47:55 +0000

It does. And to think I spend SO much time living in thoughts of the future and the past.. rarely accepting or realizing the Now. Just understanding that has changed my life so drastically and I am learning that acceptance is also a life changing, stress reducing..just happier way to live. *sigh* What relief. JEMi | Tips for Life, Love, You's last blog post..How to Work Amongst Difficult People

By: Tom Stine

Tom Stine — Fri, 23 May 2008 16:22:45 +0000

@JEMi I’m really glad you like it. I think you will find the process useful. Here’s something to consider: when are you ever not living in the NOW? You can THINK about the past and future, but aren’t you always living now? Puts a new perspective on things, doesn’t it?

By: JEMi | Tips for Life, Love, You

JEMi | Tips for Life, Love, You — Fri, 23 May 2008 00:45:36 +0000

When I listend to Eckhart speak about NOW and living in the NOW.. it had got to be one of the most powerful life changing things I’ve learned this year. I am blessed to be learning so much but that particular piece of advice
It does apply directly to what youre saying here and I know this because its whats helping me currently overcome so many things in my life.

I am at a point of recovery and living in the NOW is helping me push through fear that has held me back with no mercy

lol and looking up at the comments
I heart Oprah as is

anyway back to your post

I will be working on those steps you wrote out.

Excellent reading (as usual) that leaves me feeling better about life
thank you Tom

JEMi | Tips for Life, Love, You’s last blog post..How to Work Amongst Difficult People

By: Tom Stine

Tom Stine — Wed, 21 May 2008 17:14:31 +0000

@JoLynn I’m still working through the webinars. I loved Eckhart, but Oprah…. *sigh* Good old Oprah tries hard, very hard. She wants to let it all go, but she has a tough time, I can tell. She seeks and seeks. I’m very glad for what she is doing, though.

By: JoLynn from The Fit Shack

JoLynn from The Fit Shack — Tue, 20 May 2008 19:48:24 +0000

Excellent post Tom, did you enjoy the webinars with Eckart Tolle? I did, I've been watching them again online, too. It's so much easier to live in Joy when you stay present in the moment, thanks! JoLynn from The Fit Shack's last blog post..How To Stay Healthy & Fit While Working From Home

By: Tom Stine

Tom Stine — Sun, 18 May 2008 21:41:49 +0000

@Mary Thanks! I will have to check out your next post.

By: Mary@GoodlifeZen

Mary@GoodlifeZen — Sun, 18 May 2008 20:55:21 +0000

Lovely article! I’m just writing a related one on how love and fear impact on one’s life and I’ll link to this post.
cheers
Mary

By: Tom Stine

Tom Stine — Fri, 16 May 2008 17:23:36 +0000

@Craig Thanks. I would have to agree: fear is the list topper. There really is no getting around the fact that it shuts us down in so many ways. And simply seeing it is often enough to let it go.

By: Craig Harper

Craig Harper — Fri, 16 May 2008 02:34:17 +0000

Great post!
People often ask me what I believe stops so many of us from fulfilling our potential and from creating our best life. In truth, there are many things on the list of likely obstacles: procrastination, laziness, ignorance, indifference, ego and a bunch of other stuff, but without doubt, at the top of most lists, is fear.
Clarity is key!

By: Tom Stine

Tom Stine — Fri, 16 May 2008 00:41:01 +0000

@Patricia Thank you. I love spiritual retreats. I’m heading to another one in June. My last one for a while, I think. But you never know. Fear = future. Yes.

By: Patricia - Spiritual Journey Of A Lightworker

Patricia - Spiritual Journey Of A Lightworker — Thu, 15 May 2008 20:31:16 +0000

Tom, your clarity is fantastic. Simplicity really is best. Ah, the benefit of spiritual retreats. They tend, for me, to strip away the clutter of the mind where I can see such simple truths as you just gave us---Fear is always about the future. Thanks. Patricia - Spiritual Journey Of A Lightworker's last blog post..Blessed By Strong Women---Happy Mother's Day

By: Davidya

Davidya — Thu, 15 May 2008 19:14:24 +0000

Exactly. Expectations are founded on ideas of 'how it is' later, rather than simply what is. I go into that on the latest post. And added references (and link) to what you speak of here. Thanks for adding the practical side. Without that, it is just more story. There is no being without doing... Davidya's last blog post..Expectations = Suffering

By: Expectations = Suffering « In 2 Deep

Expectations = Suffering « In 2 Deep — Thu, 15 May 2008 18:58:05 +0000

[...] Coincidentally (there are none), while I was drafting this my friend Tom Stine wrote a post on how Fear is Future. Fear arises in the expectation of a negative future outcome. This is exactly what I’m [...]

By: Tom Stine

Tom Stine — Thu, 15 May 2008 15:20:53 +0000

@Davidya Funny, I almost included a bit about expectations, but I saved that for another day. Expectations are clearly future related. And, as Adyashanti put it, you can almost guarantee that, no matter what you are expecting to happen, the oppoosite will quite likely occur.

By: Tom Stine

Tom Stine — Thu, 15 May 2008 15:19:29 +0000

@Mark I hope you get a lot out of it, Mark. I used a version of this one quite a bit for a while. Always useful.

By: Davidya

Davidya — Thu, 15 May 2008 15:15:46 +0000

Ah, Tom, well done. Theres a lot of clarity right there. Clarity that creates the space for opening to what is. And what is is so much better than future fear. I am just drafting a post about how expectations lead to suffering. And here you post about fear, an expectation of the future. Davidya's last blog post..Maxwell not Maxwell?

By: Mark

Mark — Thu, 15 May 2008 03:43:50 +0000

I have some fear issues standing out in my life right now. I'm going to try this out and I'll let you know how it worked for me. This post is the kind I enjoy from you Tom keep it up. Mark's last blog post..Justa looking forward!