Fearless

Much ado is made over being fearless.  Many great athletes, adventurers, and innovators are often described using this adjective, their achievements towering over their equally larger-than-life personas. What exactly, though, does it mean to be fearless?  Why do people want to assume that great accomplishments come only through a lack of one of the most basic human instincts?

Fear is often one of the first emotions we remember having.  As children, we are afraid of the dark, of our nightmares, or of losing sight of our parents in a crowded room.  Perhaps these basic early fears reveal the real reason for the existence of the emotion: survival.  As we mature we develop more complex fears--fear of losing those close to us, fear of failure, fear of being alone--but the reasoning remains the same.  We fear these things because of our strong desire for both physical and emotional security.   I believe it is impossible--perhaps with the exception of sociopathic individuals--for someone to go through a lifetime without having feelings of fear in some context.  How, then, can anyone truly be called "fearless"?

It is not a lack of fear that aids the world's greatest individuals in their successes.  Rather, being "fearless" is simply finding the ability to override every hesitant impulse, nagging doubt, and feeling of outright terror in order to complete the task at hand.  Fearlessness is looking down the face of the steepest wave you've ever seen, feeling your stomach twist in a knot, and deciding to make the drop anyways.  It's finding the courage to run your first marathon in spite of the fact that your training went nothing as planned.  It's taking the risk of becoming a laughingstock and a failure in order to push a bold new technology.  It's not a lack of self-doubt--it's an ability to toss those feelings aside.  The moments in life with the potential for greatness are often some of the most terrifying.  And through the fear, you're faced with a decision. "Am I going to do this--or not?" Sometimes you have to throw caution to the wind.  Yes, you could land smack on your ass.  But you could also have a moment that changes your life.  That's what being fearless is all about.