Recently I’ve been meditating on the difference between being startled and being scared…

I finally reached the conclusion that, both can and usually will warrant an initial short term reaction which changes when considering medium to long term implications.

To be startled, is to feel or experience sudden shock or alarm, whereas being scared, speaks to more deep rooted and unpleasant emotions that could eventually hinder one from progressing, advancing or moving forward.

Speaking to myself first, I find that we often make unfair demands when we unnecessarily beat ourselves up for being startled in a moment. The sudden shock experienced from the unexpected speaks to active and functioning sensory organs and detectors more than anything. The fact that we jump when startled just means we are alive! It is one of the many in-built systems that have aided the survival of man over many centuries. Just because we were made to ‘jump’ when faced with a challenge or something we weren’t used to, doesn’t mean we aren’t prepared or qualified to progress and proceed. 

I write this for someone like me who has for-gone opportunities because they were startled in one way or another. Don’t allow some initial sudden shock succeed in scaring you off the path you were meant to venture! It is one thing to be scared - fear has its own remedy, but it’s another thing to allow a sudden shock to graduate into fear in our minds. We must not be unnecessarily hard on ourselves. It is ok to be startled. But it is NOT ok to allow that sudden shock to lead to long term fear. 

When faced with a sudden shock, especially when chasing goals and dreams, it is important to remind ourselves of these questions:

• Could there be other facts that I am yet to be made aware of that would further re-assure me for the journey I am embarking on?

• Will this really matter in the grand scheme of things?

• Am I giving this momentary shock more importance in my mind than actually exists?

• Are there previous similar experiences I can draw on where I worried and was scared unnecessarily?

• How can I learn from this sudden shock for the future? 

There is a difference between being startled and being scared. Don’t allow the short term shock, become a long term obstacle. 

When you ‘jump’, decide to proceed forward anyway! 

You were made for this! 

...Everybody say Yeahhhh!

Something to think on further…

“If we find ourselves moving from being startled to being scared, how do we overcome such fear, and is it solely mental?”

Let me know your thoughts below!