From the last post, I want to point out how critical it is to stare your problems in the face. 
Remember I said to rewrite your list every day. If you are afraid of performing some of the tasks this is OK, really! Keep writing them. There is something about doing this that tells Fear to kiss your ass. When you simply write them down, you are acknowledging your deficiency simply by staring it in the face on a daily basis. Some people have problems they are so afraid of that they will not inventory them. It scares them too much. They think if they write it down that they will have to act. It can literally scare the crap out of you…well figuratively.
When these items show up over and over on your list, you are forced to come to grips with the fact that it is important AND you are neglecting it. I have seen people do this for years. I worked with a guy that was trying to succeed in sales in numerous endeavors. He would not pick up the phone and call people. He failed at many jobs. He did not like rejection, and avoided it violently. It has cost him years of success. Had he put on his to do list over and over again, make calls, he would see the deficiency in his business, because he would see DAILY that he is not doing this. Eventually he would be forced to deal with it or choose to deny that is the deficiency. I have seen him flounder around for years.
When these problems show up as repeat offenders they can seem monumental. They are not. The problem is really simple. They are STILL numerous micro-tasks that you can’t get your head around attacking. Reason why is they are allied with one another and you see them as huge problem. They are all little problems and need to be subdivided and attacked.
For instance, I take a lot of pills to supplement my nutrition. The foods today have less nutritional value than they did decades ago. I work with a doctor to determine my personal deficiencies and take food supplement pills daily to improve my health. I also like to drink wine, eat red meat and smoke cigars occasionally. This usually leaves me feeling less than spectacular the next day, but the enjoyment is generally worth whatever pain is associated with it. Some people call this a hangover. I always call a hangover alcohol related. This is alcohol, meat, smoke and sleep deprivation coming together for a superfecta. You can’t really call it a hangover.
The mornings after doing this, the pills that I take can really be hard to swallow. Literally. Haha! I am tired, cranky, full, dehydrated and my stomach does not want much in it. When I feel this way, the thought of taking these pills sincerely overwhelms me. I am at my desk, I do not have water, the pills are in my bag, I do not feel like it, I skipped breakfast, pills make my stomach queasy. The thought of taking pills stirs up all of these little pesky problems, and I simply do not want to do it. I think to myself, I can’t do this.
Of course I can. I simply have to break down pill taking into smaller tasks. This problem needs to be disaggregated into smaller tasks. Seeing a handful of micro tasks is easier than seeing a major task of taking all of my pills. I think to myself, I can’t take pills if they are in my bag. Get pills out goes on the list. I can’t do it on an empty stomach. Grab snack. I can’t take them without water either. Fill up water bottle. Finally, swallow pills. There have been days where I have used this strategy. It may sound stupid, but it is not. One big reason is that it works AND it gives me a sense of accomplishment by crossing items off of my list. I have achieved something, and it is no longer hindering me. This can be really helpful when you do not feel 100%.
I know, the pill taking story may seem a little stupid. It is no big deal if you do not take your pills one day. Also, most of us have much bigger problems staring us in the face than taking supplements too. However, the strategy for addressing them is exactly the same. If you are in sales, you will love the next entry. I am going to dissect my own personal strategy of overcoming fear in sales by utilizing this skill. It was the launching point for learning to Jump Afraid.