What fear has held you back the most in your life?

Fear is something we all carry, though it shows up differently for each of us. It can keep us safe, but it can also hold us back from opportunities, relationships, and growth. We asked some brilliant members of the community to share the one fear that has shaped their choices the most—and their answers reveal just how universal, yet deeply personal, our struggles with fear really are.

Mich Page

I think fear of judgement has held me back most in my life. I had a tough early life, a tough schooling experience. Letting go and just being fully and authentically myself is something I still working on every day! Lots of patience and many baby steps later but we are making progress for sure. Read more>>

Lily Repace

I’ve always had a fear of speaking in public and singing because I’m deaf/hard of hearing. I started to lose that fear when my mentor had me read a poem to be the sound on a project we worked on to explain how I feel vs hear sounds. Read more>>

Macki Alvarez-Mena

Ah! This is a real one. As I continue to get older I have realized how much fear infiltrates my daily life. I can logically separate my fears within a situation but struggle to eliminate the feeling. I’m still working on it! Read more>>

Maria Brasero

Fear of rejection. But now looking back, I’m so grateful for many of the “no’s” I got because they were blessings in disguise. There is truly not rejections but “redirections”. Read more>>

Nina Harada

The fear of failure. I know it’s one many of us struggle with. Growing up there was a lot of pressure to be perfect, especially academically. Art was a hobby, while the ‘real’ work was in math and science. Read more>>

Badmom Zae

The fear of failure itself. Because in fearing failure I have not always applied myself to the best of my abilities in certain situations. Where risk may have rewarded me I have been overly conservative. Read more>>