Want to be Fearless? Find Your Inner Super-Kid

Think back to your childhood. Did you hear a lot of “get down off of there”? Did you come home with a lot of skinned knees? Whatever you did, though, it was probably fun. You probably tried all sorts of new things, and it never occurred to you to be afraid.

What happened to those fearless kids who wandered down scary looking alleys, climbed to the roof, or battled monsters with make-believe swords? We started listening to what people told us to do. We started believing that brave was really reckless, that our dreams would never happen, and we learned not to try.

Surprise! The spunky side of your “inner child” is still in there. If you want to take charge of your days, and your thinking, you don’t need childlike innocence. You need spunk. That adventurous, plucky side of your nature is still inside of you, ready to climb mountains, and conquer your worries. You just have to let it out. Be fearless.

“Promise me you’ll always remember: You’re braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think”_ Christopher Robin to Winnie the Pooh. (A.A. Milne)

You may have read this to your children, and hoped they took it to heart. But since the quote shows up now on gift shop plaques, it probably means that a lot of us women shoppers could use a reminder.

Consider how you might change each day if you really saw yourself as braver, stronger, and smarter that you have let yourself believe. What worlds could you conquer with the combination of childhood enthusiasm and grown up smarts?

Girls still want to have fun. Need to restart your positive attitude? Go have some fun. Find like minded friends and get out there. Do kid-like things. Roller skate, fall down, get up, and laugh at yourself. Throw a ball, swing in the park. Dance until dawn.

Cherish those things about your childhood self that made you who you are today. J. K. Rowlings has said that her character Hermione Granger is at least partly based on herself as a child. If she had not honored and written about that part of her life, the Harry Potter books might never have come to be.

What did you like about yourself? Were you the smart kid, the class clown? Be thankful for your strengths, your joys, your struggles, and the challenges you overcame.

Slough off negatives that have stuck to you over the years. Growing up isn’t easy. As we grow circumstances and people’s opinions attach to us, so our inner selves becomes harder to see. Well, you can shake off those negative influences, like a bunch of sticky notes someone stuck to you, and reacquaint yourself with who you are underneath.

At times life really can be dangerous, and part of being human means learning how to overcome whatever life sends us. As children we already knew this, but we weren’t afraid. We just made our tin-foil swords and set out to face the world. The good news is, we still can still be fearless.

Is there a childhood memory, or a character that inspires you? Tell us your story, or share this with a friend.