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FEAR NOT!
Phobia: An IRRATIONAL fear
that interferes with one's life or daily routine. Are there fears
in your life that are interfering with your success or forward
motion? What are you afraid of? Where does that fear come from?
I always tease my mother, telling her that I was scarred for life
when, as a child, I watched a freakishly scary, double-feature movie
about a murderer dressed in a Santa Claus costume and a room full of
razor blades that closed in on a man. To this day I cannot watch scary
movies. My husband is afraid of clowns and any bowl or plate that a dog
eats off of--I think it is interferring with his ability to bond with
our dogs or maybe it just keeps him from sending them to the circus???
Are you afraid to take that leap of faith and go for that new
position at work? Have you been wanting to call that special person and
tell them how you feel, but fear has held you back? Are you standing on
the cliff of greatness and you are afraid to take that next step?
I learned years ago that FEAR is simply False Evidence Appearing Real.
Think about it--You hear a scary noise in your bedroom. It sounds like
someone walking around right outside your window, but upon closer
inspection, you discover the noise is actually your window coverings
tapping against the screen.
Your brain had False Evidence Appearing Real. In a matter of
seconds, your brain can conjure up a full length horror movie, complete
with Santa suit and razor blades!
When someone you care about is late coming home, or doesn't say what you wish they would say, FEAR starts to creep in.
When you are feeling that wave of anxiety about something, ask yourself these 5 questions:
1. What am I afraid of?
2. What is the worst thing that could happen?
3. What evidence do I have?
4. How can I create new and factual evidence that will give me the outcome that I desire?
5. What can I do immediately to move closer to that outcome?
Remember to challenge the FEAR, take a closer look and if you still can't seem to shake that irrational feeling, blame your mother for letting you watch scary movies!
Identify These Phobias:
1. Samhainophobia is the fear of _____________
Hint: Some are experiencing this this week.
2. Lygophobia is the fear of ______________
Hint: Bats do NOT have this phobia.
3. Anthropophobia is the fear of ___________
Hint: If you are sitting alone, you may have this.
4. Xyrophobia is the fear of ___________
Hint: I have this phobia because of my mother.
5. Luposlipaphobia is the fear of ______________
Hint: You may have this fear after cleaning day.
(Answers at the bottom)
WISE CRACKS!
Top 5 Life-Saving Lessons from Scary Movies:
5- When it appears that you have killed a monster, never go back to double check!
4-
If your friends start hissing, howling, growing hair before your eyes,
or their eyes start to glow yellow or red...get away from them quickly.
3- When you are home alone and the power goes out suddenly, do not go down in the basement to check things out--go next door!
2- If you are invited to an island filled with flesh-eating dinosaurs, tell the host you already have plans that day.
1- If you find a town that looks deserted...keep driving, there is a reason it is deserted!
--------------
How do you know when you are too old to go Trick-or-Treating?
1- When people throw packs of bran cereal into your pumpkin...you're too old to Trick-or-Treat!
2- If
you ring the doorbell and the door opens but suddenly you can't
remember why you are there...it's time to turn in the mask.
3- If
people ask you if you are dressed as an old lady, but you aren't
wearing a costume...it may be time to turn in the treat sack!
4- If
you get out of breath having to walk door-to-door...for three houses,
you may be ready to stay home and eat your own candy!
5- When you
discover you are the only Ninja-Turtle using a walker to get from house
to house...you may be to old to Trick-or-Treat!
---------------
The Wolfman comes home one day from a long day at the
office. "How was work, dear?" his wife asks. "Listen! I don't want to
talk about work!" he shouts.
"Okay. Would you like to sit down and
eat a nice home cooked meal?" she asks nicely. "Listen!" he shouts
again. "I'm not hungry! I don't wanna eat! Is that alright with you?
Can't I just come home from work and do my own thing without
you forcing food down my throat?"
At this moment, the wolfman
started growling, and throwing things around the apartment in a mad
rage. Looking out the window, his wife sees a full moon and says to
herself, "Well, I guess it's that time of the month."
---------------
The street vendors in New York City are an enterprising
lot, which I guess you need to be if you are trying to hawk your goods
to a bunch of New Yorkers. I was walking up Fifth Avenue the other day
when I passed by a guy selling all kinds of socks. Since I seem to lose
at least one sock every time I do laundry, I decided to have
a look. I was greeted with a big smile and a clever greeting: "Welcome to Socks Fifth Avenue." How can anyone resist that? I took home two pair.
TRIVIA
1. What do you call a group of mice?
A. A
Nest
B. A Pack
C. A Herd D. A Den
2. What did Vice President Richard Nixon do to a protester who spit on him in 1958 while visiting Venezuela?
A. Cut
off his head B. Turn the other
cheek C. Have him
arrested D. Kick him in the shins
3. Which one of these things can kill a ware wolf?
A. A chicken bone B. Garlic C. A Silver bullet D. Candy corn
4. Which ghoulish rocker funds a celebrity golf tournament in his name?
A. Alice Cooper B. Ozzy Ozborne C. Barry Manilow D. Gene Simmons
NEW NEW NEW
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 Tony the Toenail & Other Stories to Inspire
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ASK BOB 
A Regular Column on Relationships
by Man's Best Friend
Q: I am a manager
with 12 people that report to me. I have found that I can get a higher
level of productivity when I hang a "carrot" of some sort over the head
of a couple of my employees. Sometimes I tell everyone that there
is a possible bonus if they hit a certain goal or I let a few of
them know that upper management is "looking" at them for possible
promotion opportunities. They are not totally untrue, but my
friend says that is manipulation. I say it's called creative
leadership. What are your thoughts?
A: I love to eat. I
live for treats and will even humiliate myself in front of others,
rolling on the carpet, playing dead and dancing on my hind legs, like
some circus-fool-dog, all for a piece of Snausage
snacks. The reputation of my talents has spread to all the
children in our neighborhood and they will come over with little treats
and biscuits in exchange for a few moments of lowering myself to put on
a kiddie show--hey I'm not proud of it, it's just a simple way of
earning a living.
There is a little brat that lives one street
over, his name is Bobby. He comes over and pretends to have treats for
me. At first I fell for his evil trickery. I danced, I sat, I rolled
over so many times I got dizzy. When I sat back up expecting the treat
to appear, Bobby would give out another command. "Bang!" he would yell,
and I would roll onto my back. I laid there for 30 or 40 seconds, with
my eyes just barely closed. I would peek to see if he was
getting that treat ready, but the treat never materialized. Call me
slow, but after about 28 tricks, I realized the kid was a phony! A
fake! A good-for-nothing neighborhood punk. I got up and walked away.
He kept calling my name, but I didn't look back. Now when we see each
other out on the front porch, he comes running up yelling out commands,
and I growl at him, daring him to come one step closer so I can bite
his ankle.
Sure you will get people to perform for you when you hold that
"carrot" out in front, but once they catch on to your tricks, you
better watch your ankles!
Q: Hi Bob. I just
started working with my husband and we have very different ways of
operating. His approach is very systematic and mine is more
broad-stroke or big-picture. We are already feeling the strain on
our relationship and yet separately we love what we are doing.
Any tips?
A: In our office here we
are very different--I love to nap most of the day, between eating
snacks and meals of course and then I put in a few hours here or there
answering E-mail messages and writing my column. The other folks around
here are much more serious. They seem to need a meeting for
everything and the amount of stressful activity wears me out just to
watch, so here are a few ideas for you.
First you must realize that differences are fine and even good...
when acknowledged. The key to success in your situation is to set
clear communication and working guidelines. Everyone around here
knows my typical schedule and how to motivate me when they need
something done by their "deadline"...treats!
You need to ask each other: How often do you need to
communicate? What kind of information do we need and how
do we like to receive that information? If you worked for a
total stranger, you would have to do the same thing, don't assume
because you are married that you don't need those same
courtesies. When expectations are not met and you are feeling
tense about something, remember a treat goes along way to smoothing
things out!
Bob "Barker" is the faithful companion to
the Schreck family and resides in Littleton, Colorado. Like most dogs,
Bob is a relationship expert and would love to answer your questions.
Just send mail to Bob@schrecktalk.com
DID YOU KNOW?
- The very first jack o' lantern was made out of a turnip.
- Bobbing
for apples is thought to have originated from the roman harvest
festival that honors Pamona, the goddess of fruit trees.
-
Tootsie Rolls were the first wrapped penny-candy in America.
-
The
ancient Celts thought that spirits and ghosts roamed the countryside on
Halloween night. They began wearing masks and costumes to avoid being
recognized as human.
-
The
biggest pumpkin in the world tipped the scales at a whopping 1,446
pounds. This gigantic gourd was weighed in October 2004 at a pumpkin
festival in Port Elgin, Ontario, Canada.
-
Of
all canned fruits and vegetables, pumpkin is the best source of vitamin
A. Just a half-cup of the orange stuff has more than three times the
recommended daily requirement.
Fear is that little darkroom where
negatives are developed.
~Michael Pritchard
Would You Rather...
(A new mental game to challenge your thinking each month and spark conversations at work and home!)
- Would you rather...be trapped in a jail with a guard who hates you, or with a cell mate who hates you?
- Would you rather...always have to write with your non-dominant hand or always have to write with your eyes closed?
- Would you rather...get a bad case of poison ivy way up inside your nose, or inside your inner ear?
- Would you rather... have regular encounters with aliens and never have any proof, or have your best friend be invisible?
- Would you rather...eat all your food liquefied and frozen like
a Popsicle, or have strangers squish all your food like wine grapes
with their perfectly clean, but bare feet before you eat it?
P O W
(Pearls of Wisdom)
Fear is nature's warning signal to get busy.
~ Henry C. Link
It's
the heart afraid of dying, that never learns to dance; It's the dream
afraid of waking, that never takes the chance; It's the one who won't
be taken, who cannot seem to give; And the soul afraid of dying, that
never learns to live.
~ Bette Midler "The Rose"
All of us are born with a set of instinctive fears--of
falling, of the dark, of lobsters, of falling on lobsters in the dark,
or speaking before a Rotary Club, and of the words "Some Assembly
Required."
~Dave Barry
Monthly Challenge!
Do the Thing You Fear the Most!
Eleanor Roosevelt said, "We
gain strength, and courage, and confidence by each experience in which
we really stop to look fear in the face... we must do that which we
think we cannot."
So this month, make a point to
identify one thing per week that you put off doing because of fear.
Fear of failing; fear of rejection; fear of embarrassment; fear of
complications; fear of hassle. Face that fear and get it done!
Take massive action! Volunteer to make that presentation at work;
Call that friend or family member that you have not spoken to in months
(or years); Make those phone calls that you dread making! You can then
celebrate your new courage, confidence and strength!
ID the PHOBIAS
1. Samhainophobia is the fear of Halloween
2. Lygophobia is the fear the Dark
3. Anthropophobia is the fear of People
4. Xyrophobia is the fear of Razors
5.
Luposlipophobia is the fear of being pursued by timber wolves around
the kitchen table while wearing socks on a newly waxed floor!
Answers to Trivia
1. A A group of mice might be called "dead" in my house, but they are called a NEST.
2. D When
Richard Nixon was visiting Venezuela and a protester spit on him, the
secret service agents quickly grabbed the man and VP Nixon kicked
him in the shins, saying it made him feel so much better!
3.
C If you see a ware wolf this week, take
out a silver bullet...I wonder if they mean a can of Coors!
4. A Alice Cooper and golf.....I just can't picture it!
© 2005
Feel free to forward this to all of your friends, family members and even those you don’t particularly
care for!
It may not be sung in a high school
play, written in sand on beaches west of Belize or photocopied without
our permission though, so for reprint permission, please call
303-978-0887.
"Random Thoughts" is a monthly email distributed by The Pinnacle Group & SchreckTalk Keynotes. www.Schrecktalk.com |