Eliminate doubt and fear
“Doubts and fears should be rigorously excluded; they are disintegrating elements, which break up the straight line of effort.”
— James Allen
Reflection
“Doubts and fears should be rigorously excluded,” James Allen writes, because they poison effort at the root. When you let them stay, they don’t just make you feel bad; they quietly vote against every step of progress you try to take. A doubting mind questions whether it is worth starting. A fearful mind questions whether it is safe to continue. Between the two, many good works die in the cradle.
Rigorously excluding doubt and fear doesn’t mean you never feel them. It means you stop granting them authority. You treat them as untrustworthy advisors whose counsel may be loud but is rarely wise. Instead of asking, “What does my fear say?” you begin asking, “What does truth say? What does God say? What does my best, most obedient self know I should do?”
This shift is more practical than it sounds. It looks like sending the email anyway, making the call anyway, applying for the position anyway, starting the project anyway. Each time you move forward in spite of inner resistance, you weaken the grip of doubt and fear. Little by little, they stop being your default reaction and become occasional visitors you know how to dismiss.
The goal is not a fearless life; it is a faithful life. When you make that your aim, doubts and fears lose their power to cancel your obedience. They may still knock on the door, but they no longer get to run the house.
And that’s worth thinking about.
— Vic Johnson
Putting It Into Practice
- Identify one area where doubt or fear has kept you from acting and write down the specific story they keep telling you.
- Answer that story with a short, truth-filled statement you can return to whenever hesitation rises.
- Take one concrete step today that directly contradicts the message of your doubt or fear.
One Question To Ponder
If you stopped letting doubt and fear vote on your decisions, what is the first action you would finally take?
Get Weekly James Allen E-Meditations
Each week we send a short, powerful meditation on James Allen’s writings — plus simple, practical ways to live the teaching in your everyday life.
Think better. Live better. One James Allen insight at a time.