Carpe Diem

There is always a fear of the unknown. I would have to say that one of my biggest fears--even bigger than my fears of fire, ladybugs, and spiders--is the fear of possible failure. When I have an opportunity to do something, I always have a voice in the back of my head asking me all sorts of scary "what if" questions, such as "What if I sound stupid?", "What if I can't do what is asked of me?", or "What if I make someone mad?". It is a paralyzing voice that keeps me from seizing the moment and making the most of my life. One of the best quotes I have heard recently was "Better to have tried and failed than to have failed to try." I am not sure who said it, but it is something I have been thinking a lot about lately. I cannot go through life afraid of doing things and holding myself back from a fulfilled life just because I am afraid of failure. There are so many possibilities that are just waiting for me if I just let myself try, fail or not. I will never know the what the results would have been and be continuously regretting not taking advantage of the situation given me with new "what if" questions coursing through my brain: "What if I had done it?", "What if I hadn't waited so long?", "What if I had seized the opportunity?". I am not saying that I should be rash and rush into doing things without giving any thought to the outcome, not at all. I am merely saying that I should not hold myself back due to irrational fears that have more to do with my pride than anything else. I need to learn to seize the day.