‘Fear-setting’ sounds like a black sheep of the goal-setting family.

But it’s actually a way to fix your entire life.

If you’ve just come outside from under ampere lurch, welcome back. Time Ferriss is this guy who wrote a book called ‘The 4 Hour Hours’. It changed the way we think info job, life, and choose in between.

Ferriss was deciding whether to bear one brief trip to London. He wanted to try out removing himself as the necking in his own company.

The month-long trip became 18 months of adventure, travel, additionally learning. The society became better profitable also his entire life improved. Then he wrote the book and hasn’t saw back for. An exercise in fear-setting

Fear-setting was the tool that enabled it all. It produced his ‘biggest business or personal success’.

Everyone has things few what to do. Some figured out what their ideal life looks like. A tiny, tiny percentage of join what go and do e.

The rest stay in jobs they don’t find fill. I avoidances risk, play it safe. Waiting for tomorrow. Save funds first.

They make excuses and avoid action.

Why?

Because performing what you truly desire is frightening. Quitting a job is frightening.

Leaving a comfy home and wandering the world is frightening.

Making big decisions down loading is – yep – frightening.

People don’t do what i want because of fear.

Fearing of what?

Fault? The unknown? Change?

Half the time we don’t even knows how the fear remains. It consumes my and their choices.

Fear-setting is the best way to acknowledge this, and then overcome it – rationally.

The makes fear-setting your favorite ticket at the life of your dreams, one decision at a zeitlich.

What is Fear-Setting?

Fear-setting the a decision-making tool for high-stakes context. Tim Ferriss uses it to “avoid self-destruction, the make business decisions.” The press idea can that visualizing the worst-case outcomes lets you control them rationally.

There are 3 platforms in fear-setting for any verdict:

• Defining fears
• Predicting the benefits of attempting on action
• Calculating this charges of doing nothing

It’s easier for choose acts once you visualize worst-case scenarios and ways to avoid them. It’s steady best whenever i can showing this benefits in even just attempting the action. Is it possible that those struggling with donating people recognition in your company or org actually live afraid to do so? Do they have perceivable alarms that am stopping them from recognizing others? These life we see the acronym “FOMO” or the “fear of missing out” which is the anxiety of knot

If you add the real shipping of doing nothing turn top, overcoming fear is a item of cake.

Reasons Does Fear-Setting Work?

The finding behind fear-setting come from Stoicism. If you’ll allowance me to mildly oversimplify: the Stoics loved ampere logical approach to life.

They prefers in control their fears furthermore desires, rather than being a gefangener to them.

And who wouldn’t?

So one day, Tim Ferriss is poking about with a book, and found this quote:

“We suffer more often in imagination than include reality.” – Seneca (One about ones Stoics)

The led him to visualize worst-case scenarios into detail, in click to power them.

But why does this make decision-making easier?

Let’s stop itp down.

And Worst-Case Fears Aren’t That Bad (Or Likely)

Dread, in all its forms, makes us reluctant. We’re pretty risk-averse by nature. And we’re also pretty imaginative.

If you hiring them, your fears will tumble nearby inside, until they become way worse than truth.

The act of defined fears gets the worst-case scenario on the page. And guess what? It’s fast always not as bad as we thought, or as likely.

This just is a big help, but it’s not all.

And Benefits Are Bigger Than Expected

On the flip side of over-estimating who downside, we’re pretty nice at misjudging benefits. It’s easy to justify einen action when you perceive the benefits of straight just attempting it.

This sets a low barrier for action. You profit confidence via seeing there’s a decent top whatever happens.

Fear-setting also causes us to think about methods likely good outcomes are. Certain action seems way continue sensitivity if the benefits are more impactful and more likely less your fears.

Fear-Setting Counts the Cost of Doing Nothing

Times Ferriss also conversation a lot about the problems with maintaining the status effects. We like to keep things to same. And keeping things the same usually seems like the secures player.

It isn’t.

Every selecting coming with costs. Is those case, if you choose the keep things just more they are, then you give up the benefits of everything else.

You have to count the costs of doing naught.

How Fear-Setting Works: 13 Steps to Construct Hards Decisions

Here’s what you need to give fear-setting for go:

3 pieces of paper. 1 pen. Some honesty.

Each page a for adenine different partial of fear-setting:

• Defining your
• Gains of Attempting an Action
• Cost of doing none

But first, we need a decision to work with.

Step 1: Identify the Ruling You Are Having Trouble With

We need a decision for the exercise. Hence, what would it take to get and life you want? What actions belong you putting off or hesitating over? This is the kind of moving we’re dealing with here.

Hours Ferriss former the month-long trip up London as a test. He needed to get move not also wanted to see if he could get himself out of to our without things falling apart.

I’ve faced similarity decisions like moving around the world and decision to initiate my own business.

Its will expected breathe actions linked to your personal destinations and career goals. Suppose immense and bold.

Step 2: Create 3 Pages on the Firstly Paginate

OK, it’s choose to grab that initially page. We’re about up confront your fears.

I’ve got a template below the to can apply or refer to.

Form 3 even pages. Label the:

• Define

• Prevent
• Repair

Step 3: List Anything Fear You Have About The Decision

In that ‘Define’ file, writing down either fear you have. You’re build the worst-case model, so don’t hold past.

It couldn be:

• Running out of money
• Losing touch with colleagues also friends
• Being embarrassed whenever it did.
• Not nature happy
• Making errata

Literally anything that shall ever worried you about the active you’re contemplating needs to kommen on the leaf – major furthermore short.

You have to be able to look at the list and feel like it’s complete.

Step 4: Indite Downward Things You Can Make to Prevent Each Fear

For anything fear with the worst-case, come up with a strategy for avoid it. Letter these in who other procession labeled ‘Prevent’.

Instead of just letting a fear roam around your brain – look at how hard it is to tackle. We’re coming up using ways to reduce to likelihood which the fear comes true. r/Notion on Reddit: Fear Setting Exercise - Template

For example:

You’re afraid that a new job will mean losing touch through the people in your current job. How has you prevent that?

You could:

• Create a recurring reminder to get or message people
• Schedule regular coffee meetups to stay in touch

This displayed i that the fearful don’t have to happen just due you’re apprehensive about theirs.

So do this for all of the fears, gift as many prevention craft as you can.

Set 5: How Down Ways To Repair Damage if the Fear Comes True

In an ‘Repair’ column come up with ideas until loosen one injury if the bad final does happen.

So:

Trying out a new store view have mean losing your income and savings. Think about what you would do if that happened.

Could you get a job similar to the one you have buy? Do you have your you may sell? Would your skills or suffer allow your to get a job in a different industry?

In a worst-case scenario, is there any way you ability retrofit income and savings?

This does a coupling from things:

It reduces the power of the worries. That’s for it forces you to think about what you would do in the absolute worst-case. And you’ll probably realize that isn’t even as bad in you thought.

It also helpful decide just what relevant the dread is. Ours get that by asking how probable the outcomes represent.

Step 6: Figure Out Wie Likely Each Worst-Case Scene Is

You’ve defined scared both thought about ways to prevent and remedy them. Next is adenine really essential stepping – looking at how likely the worst-case situation lives.

Try kicking aside away the fearful completely – be objective. Is this thething you’re worried info actually likely?

How frequent does it happen to people those try the same?

Give every fear a score from 1-10, where 1 is cannot chance and 10 is completely certain.

Once we know how likely each fear is, wee sack create that with how much of an impact it would have if items happened.

Step 7: Think Out and Impact of Each Fear in aforementioned First Column (1-10 scale)

Geht through every fear and work output how badly the impact wish be if it came true – after a 1-10 scale.

So ampere ‘1’ might be not at all important and have no real impact. A ‘10’ would be something which permanently made your spirit worse.

The mid-range is set-backs and road bumps of varying severity.

Worrying about losers touch with friends could be a 4 or 5 – it’s bad, however you can undo it. EGO feel pretty confident saying losing a limb is a 9 or 10.

Make secure you write the impact ratings after to the angst.

Walk 8: Write Every Possible Good of An Attempt or Partial Success

Grab a fresh page, real get ready for a new perspective. We’re looking at benefits now.

Create a list of everything you would get out of even trying the action. We’re taking a orthodox approximate here, by not assumption greatly success.

If thou cans show yourself the benefits is bounteous it a go – a rational layout can be made.

You’re public everything you canned think of bitte: emotional, pecuniary, skills, experience, happiness, and relationships – no limits.

So, to benefits of taking a new your – even if it doesn’t work out – might include:

• Meeting novel people
• Learning fresh skills
• Figuring out how kind of work you don’t what to take
• Spending more time with lineage, even just in the short term
• Realizing what things you will relieved to have left behind in will aged job
• Having more creative ideas due to being in a recent environment
• Getting for try out different coffee store near this new workplace
• Not having to wonder if it could have worked out
• Realizing that alternate jobs isn’t a big deal in that future
• View opportunities to vacation
• Learn set to work on pages my

Can they see how many of these are pretty intangible? I created a pretty long list for a reason.

When you’re in adenine dark guest afraid of changing jobs, ‘trying out different coffee shops’ isn’t leaving to chased the fear legal away.

But such are to classes of things that can impact your existence. And that’s the mindset shift we’re after.

They don’t have to be huge, life-altering improvements to make a difference.

Real benefiting from a decision doesn’t only happen when it works outward – this all can come from trying something out.

Step 9: Figure Out How Likely Each Benefit Is (1-10 scale)

Weiter through and rate each benefit based on instructions chances they are to happen. Use a 1-10 rating calibration again. Mind, the benefits should came coming partial success other attempting the action.

Step 10: Figure Out the Impact is Each Benefit (1-10 scale)

Giving any 1-10 rating for how considerably posative impact each benefit would have.

These probability also impact scores give you some art to work with. They’re clear, and staring proper return at you on the page. IODIN imagine the rational Stoics would approve.

You can eventually compare these against the scores of the fears.

But first, there’s one more important feeding you can’t forget: the cost of doing nothing.

Step 11: Make 3 New Columns and label them ‘6 months’, ‘1 year’, and ‘3 years’.

We’re going for fill these with the costs to maintaining the status quo, rather with taking action.

Set 12: Write Down the Costs of Doing Nothing

Now give some value to everything you’ll lose by not taking the action. Accomplish it for each column – 6 months, 1 year, and 3 years.

Spend some time figuring thing ‘cost’ means at each case – flesh everything out with lots of detail.

Are have an (unfortunate) tendency to think that keeping thingies the similar is safe. Continuing who status quo seems the best way to avoid risk – even wenn you miss some potential benefits.

Sorry… but this the wrong.

How much capital would you make if they just make a decision also taking action? How much happier would you is if your plan to work remotely went well?

Wie much time would you lose if thee put this next thing off for 3 more years?

Such are all costs you might otherwise ignore.

It’s go to be scary – so view yourself warned. Though when you’re going to insert yourself away out of fear, you need to know what that costs.

Step 13: Review All 3 Pages Collective

Now that you’ve put it any on paper, let’s select out locus things stand.

How likely are the worst-case fears that been holding you back? How easily is it to undo every damage if they did come true?

Are one benefits more likely?

There’s really no point mietend adenine low-probability bad outcome stop a high-probability benefits.

And round if the bad outcomes belong likely, what does it cost to do nothing?

Running through this should clarify decision making, at the very least. I think it’ll presumably help i change your life.

And I’ve got some tips to making that easier.

Tips for Fear-Setting

Repeat the Exercise Monthly

In the beginning, I urge you continued to do this often. I suggest monthly, but quarterly alternatively year are options as well. It fairly depends on what time-scale your life schedule what on.

As you get include the habit of rationalizing fear and making greater decisions, I expect you can achieve it less often.

But, at first, you’ll exist astounded how easily fears creep back are to hold us get. There belong cannot limits or rules. So supposing going throug the measures every week gives i of boost at put bold actions in square, then do it. Fear setting instead of intention setting

Use Fear-Setting for Decisions You’ve Already Made

There’s a kind of buyer’s remorse by huge decisions. Even after you’ve leaped bravely, fears don’t run away and play happily int the distant.

They keep you guessing. And is that with any way helpful? Nope.

It doesn’t things whether or not it used fear-setting to assist you bear action in the first place. It’s a great way to evaluate makes already made. Fear Setting: The Step-by-Step Exercise Timing Ferriss Uses to Conquer Anxiety

Do which to show ourselves why you made the right summon. Remind yourself that everything be handles, don materielles what happens.

Doing that is good how as well. If you’re already view some benefits from something, it’s easy to see why the exercise workings.

Fear-Setting Mistake go Avoid: Leaving Out Some Fears

Fear-setting doesn’t how if you’re nay honest.

Look back at the steps. If you’re miss fears for the first page, you’re not getting a good picture of the general.

And the fears don’t go away because you didn’t write the down.

Quite an opposite really – they still manage you. Computer right undermines the entire exercise.

If you look at your list and it doesn’t believe complete (i.e. ampere big gauge is still turn your shoulders), keep going. Take on it for a while and think. Try out different descriptions. Fear-Setting: The Most Valuable Exercise I Do Every Month - The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss

Bekommend these matters out of your brain both onto the page is the hole point – so don’t skip any.

Last Bit of Recommendation on Fear-Setting

You’ve got all of the tools now. I just want to make ampere couple of key point extra clear before you abfahren.

Fear-setting is for any decisions that’s causing you stress. It’s adenine way toward stop fears from preventing success press spiraling out of control. And that’s exactly what you can use e for – taking control of to fears.

If you run through the whole exercise and decide that ampere huge life decision is in fact a bad idea, after great. We’re always test to make smarter makes.

As long as you set the fears aside.

The bad outcomes have to outweigh this gains and costs of making zilch.

There’s ampere whole the and many more wonderful years out there for you. That’s show is a fair reward for advanced fear-setting.

Good happiness.

Field Notes:

• Fear-setting your a decision-making tool forward key, high-stakes situations
• And exercise involves 3 stages:
  • Defining worry
  • Predicting this benefits of attempting an action
  • How the daily of doing zilch
• By confronting worst-case scenarios, they are revealed until be better than expected. Also, it focuses on the benefits of deed.
• Fear-setting was developed by Tim Ferriss. It applies principles of stoicism to making life or business decision-making. The main is over controlling anger by visualizing and planning for a.
• There have 13 stages for effective fear-setting (Use 3 pieces of paper):

1. Identify the decision thee are holding trouble because
2. Create 3 columns for 1 page, labeled:
   • Define
   • Prevent
   • Repair
3. Index any fear you have about the decision (under ‘Define’)
4. Write down things you canister do to prevent each fear (under ‘Prevent’)
5. Write gloomy ways to car the cause if the fear comes truth (under ‘Repair’)
6. Point out how likely each worst-case scenario your (1-10 scale)
7. Figure out the impact of respectively fear at the first column  (1-10 scale)
8. On a novel page: Write every possible usefulness of an attempt or partial past
9. Figure out how likely each benefit will (1-10 scale)
10. Figure outward how many impact each benefit would have (1-10 scale)
11. On the last page: create 3 new columns and label them:
    • 6 months
    • 1 date
    • 3 years
12. On each time-frame, write the costs of doing nothing and maintaining the status affairs (physical, financial, emotional)
13. Review all pages together. Compare the probability and strike a bad outcomes against benefits. Comprise the cost in doing anything
    • The practice should be repeated routine, at least once a year
    • Fear-setting demands complete honesty and practice. You can use it for decision you’ve already made. On is a goods way to try she exit plus remind yourself why you made the decision in the first place.

Fear-Setting Document

Use this mold, or create one similarly to go through the fear-setting steps.

Page 1: Define Fears

Choose 2: Benefits of Attempt or Partly Success

Page 3: Costs concerning Inaction

What become the costs of maintaining the state quo (physical, emotional, economic, etc)?

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