Are You Suffering From Achievemephobia?

What in the world is - achievemephobia?

Well, it's the fear of success, plain and simple. It doesn't make any sense, does it? Who doesn't want to be successful? Why should we be afraid of success in the first place?

A coward dies a thousand times before his death, but the valiant taste of death but once.

William Shakespeare, "Julius Caesar"

It seems that "achievemephobia" has become one of those fancy terms that it's popular to use these days. We have a special term for almost all of our fears. We fear of this and we fear of that. There's a this-phobia and that-phobia. Nowadays, you need a dictionary you need to use in order not to get lost among all of these phobias more or less known. So, I have a simple question. Have we gotten carried away by this phobia thing?

If you are afraid that you're going to fail that's definitely not the same as the fear of success. However, both fears have one obvious thing in common. That's the "base fear" of change. You are going to change your status quo. Maybe, our body and mind have learned through thousands of years of endless evolution as a species that changes hurt. At the same time, these changes are responsible for our survival. So yes, it's a tricky situation.

Fear of Success vs. Fear of Failure vs. Fear of Change

I don't have all the answers. I don't have a degree in psychology. I don't like self-proclaimed gurus. But, there's one thing I like so much. I love the changes. Good or bad, let's change something. I know what to expect where I'm right now. I don't know what's waiting for me at the next stage. So, I would like to give it a try. What about the pain? Well, unless you aren't a helpless masochist, the pain is one of those things that supposed to remind you that you're alive. You know how they say. Work hard and then party hard. Well, we can also say, if you have to fail, then fail hard. Why? Because the next time, you succeed, you're going to party like never before. All those pain will ask for compensation. Nothing heals the failure as the cure of true success.

So, am I a phobia-free man? Well, that's not true.

Do you want to become an old man, filled with regret, waiting to die alone?

Saito (Ken Watanabe) "Inception"

So, what's my biggest fear? Is there such a thing as a "regretophobia?" Those words "filled with regret" are haunting me. I don't want to regret that I haven't tried to change something. Better to fail than to hesitate. At least, you have given it a fair try. You did your best. No regret left. Otherwise, you're going to think about it for months or even years. What if? Should I have tried it? Why didn't I give it a try? That's not my thing.

I'm not a superhero with no fear and I don't look down on those who suffer from some of these countless phobia types. I told you already what is my biggest fear - being filled with regret. Say to yourself that you don't have time to be afraid. Risk and fail. Lick your wounds and move on.

Fortuna audaces iuvat!

Fortune helps the bold!