Breaking Barriers: Transforming Fear into Fuel for Future Success and Motivation

(This interview was taken by Jamila.)

Desh Subba and Jamila Khattak (Ph.D Scholar)

Host: Jamila Khattak (Ph.D Scholar)

Jamila Khattak Ph.D scholar in education at Fatima Jinnah Women University Rawalpindi, Pakistan. I have expertise in the research field on different topics and focus on teachers and students collaboration and training. Fear in students is very Fear in students often manifests as anxiety and stress related to academic performance, peer relationships, and future uncertainties. This emotional response can negatively impact their cognitive functions, such as concentration, memory, and problem-solving abilities, hindering their overall learning experience. Understanding and addressing these fears through supportive educational environments, counseling, and stress management strategies is crucial for fostering resilience and promoting academic success.

Guest: Desh Subba

Introduction: Desh Subba is a renowned philosopher, author, and the founder of the Fearism movement, which explores fear as a driving force in human life and society. Born in Nepal, Subba has significantly contributed to contemporary philosophy by examining the multifaceted nature of fear and its impact on personal and collective behaviors. His seminal work, "Fearism," has garnered international recognition, inspiring discussions on how fear can be transformed from a hindrance into a motivational force. Subba's insights have resonated globally, particularly among youth, encouraging a reevaluation of fear's role in achieving success and personal growth.

Jamila: What is fear, and how does it manifest in our lives?

Desh Subba: In a normal introduction, it is an emotion, sense, feeling, and consciousness. What we understand is similar to other emotions. I call it general fear. It comes from the mind. Another comes from the amygdala part of the brain, which I call special fear. The amygdala is a primitive part of the four parts of the brain. It only looks at fear. Our senses send a message to this part. It responds, and other senses follow its instructions. In Fearism, I talk about general and special fears.

Understanding Fear

Jamila: How can fear be a barrier to achieving success and personal growth? Desh Subba: Most people understand fear as a barrier. Many authors and philosophers carry the same meaning. It is a dark part like Yang of Yin Yang Chinese philosophy. Our contribution to contemporary philosophy is looking at it from multiple approaches. In simple words, proper use of fear is a motivation. Higher and lower is evil. Even if we drink more milk, it is harmful. If we have excess fear it is a barrier. For example, a student knows all the answers to the question. He gets nervous and panics, and he fails the exam. Suppose for exam students don't fear, do careless, they are unsuccessful. Some students fear too much for exams, and they also fail. So, they must have virtue fear (medium fear). It makes them successful in life. This formula is also applicable to teachers. Every professional has to follow it, for instance, doctors, drivers, pilots, heads of government, heads of any institution.

Historical and Contemporary Examples

Jamila: Are there historical or contemporary examples of individuals who have transformed their fear into success? Desh Subba: There are many examples of it. We can see many speakers, they say, at the beginning, I could not speak because of fear, and hesitation. Slowly I controlled it myself and became a motivational speaker, singers, artists, teachers, and spiritual leaders. It is very useful for those who are shy, hesitant, nervous, introverted, and have some phobias. Girls can benefit from this idea particularly those who are dominated by culture, religion, and tradition. It is shown in movies and fiction books.

Psychological Mechanisms

Jamila: What psychological mechanisms allow people to convert fear into motivation?

Desh Subba: At present many people are suffering from hypertension, depression, anxiety, and mental health. The doctor gives medicine to them but does not try to reach the depth of the sickness. So, their treatment is not successful. Several suicide cases are increasing day by day. When exam result comes, some students do suicide. Cause of it, they define failure in the exam. It is the general understanding of parents and teachers. It is not the bottom cause. It is factual. Transcendence causes vary. A dark future, prestige, and unsuccessful life are the cause. At the bottom is fear of the dark and failure of life. If we examine the reason for depression, anxiety, and mental problems, in most cases we find fear. During my philosophical tour, I reached northeast India Manipur. I met a chairman of a literary organization. He said he is a depression patient. I asked him, "How did you become a depression patient?" He told me, he misused some amount of organization. He was tense and worried about how to repay that amount. It was his starting point. It means fear of loss of prestige, reputation, arrest, and more crises. When we dig the depths of any crisis, we reach into fear. It was left by psychology and medical science. Lots of analysis I have done on it.

Practical Strategies

Jamila: What are some practical strategies or techniques for harnessing fear as a positive force? Desh Subba: Everything can be seen from Fearism's multiple eyes. When we see a beautiful flower, we observe it from different corners. If we think it is poisonous, then, it changes into poisonous though we don't experience it. Fear is the same. For a long time, it has been understood as poisonous and harmful. First, we need to metamorphose this meaning into beautiful, fragrant, positive, and motivational. It helps us in succeeding in our lives. Suppose a person fears speaking in mass. Day by day his exercise helps him to get success. I was very shy, dreadful to speak, and nervous. I was invited to give a lecture about Fearism at Hong Kong University. I have only a graduate degree and English is not my language. I am very weak in spoken and written English. The date was 26 March 2015. This university is ranked 18 in the world this year. It is a very famous university. I must had to speak to promote my idea. What should I do? I didn't want to miss this chance. My sister gifted me an old-model Nokia phone. Everyday 1 minute I record and practice. Around a month later, I became confident that I could speak. It was my first English lecture. I spoke for one and a half hours. If a person can speak for one minute, he can easily speak for three hours. This is a practical strategy. Everyone can experiment with it.

Role of Self-Awareness

Jamila: How does self-awareness play a role in overcoming fear? Desh Subba: All the fear we don't have to overcome. It cannot be overcome because it is a consciousness that emerges from the brain. American scientists did an experiment taking out the amygdala of a rat. The rat lost consciousness and went to play with the cat because the rat's fear was removed. It staggered on the way, out of control. Self-awareness is important. Suppose a man is going to suicide. He thinks he cannot repay the loan and interest. It is his understanding. After almost jumping from the height, he enlightened that "I was not going to suicide because of the loan, I was going to kill myself because of fear of it. I can pay it on an installment basis." Before he had a boulder of fear, now he metamorphosed it into pieces- installments. It means a big fear is divided into tiny parts. It is a self-awareness of fear. It saves his life.

Supportive Environments

Jamila: How can individuals create a supportive environment that encourages overcoming fear? Desh Subba: Those intellectuals or teachers can create a Supportive Environment that understands Fearism and its school of thought. They need to understand the quotes of it, life is conducted, directed, and controlled by fear, and we are Fear Sísyphus being watched by Panopticon. Religion, myth, psychology, literature, politics, criticism, and belief systems consist of it. When they look at life, education, society, health care, law, constitution, morality, and ethics from this theory, people encourage themselves.

Fear and Goal Setting

Jamila: How can setting goals help in transforming fear into motivation? Desh Subba: A cricket team set a goal to win the World Cup. It is their goal. They must keep a fear of defeat. Fear of defeat is not negative, it is a positive because it forwards them. If a team does not keep it, they will be careless and not concentrate on the game. Fear of loss unites the team and focuses on the match. Ultimately, they win and share happiness. Not only do players become happy, but a nation celebrates bliss. That's why I said, Happiness doesn't have self- stand, it stands on fear. I give an example that is fit for a developed and underdeveloped country. Pakistan and some corrupt, nepotist countries do not fear the law and people. They hold all powers and bureaucrats. They do what they like to do. No fear of law and order for them. It is the reason the country became an unsuccessful state. On the contrary, the developed country has a fear of law and order and more fear from the public. If we are found guilty, we will be punished, they think. This fear stops them from doing illegal things. I am living in Hong Kong. Once our head of city (Chief Executive) was jailed for 20 months because of a misconduct case. It is the reason, it has a high rank in the world.

Mindfulness and Meditation

Jamila: How can mindfulness and meditation practices contribute to transforming fear? Desh Subba: Our knowledge of fear is wrong. It scapegoats us. We hate it. Civilization, politics, language, capital, hospital, insurance, fire brigade, army, detective (CIA, KGB, and RAW), and CCTV (paparazzi, newspaper) are for fear purpose or, fear-care. Fear Meditation, fear enlightens and transforms us positively. R. Michael is a specialist in fear management. It is important.

Mentors and Role Models

Jamila: What role do mentors and role models play in helping individuals overcome their fears? Desh Subba: Almost all your questions are about overcoming fear. We never overcome it. Overcome is our mirage. That's why I coined the quote "Fear is a Sisyphus". When it is up, we bring it down. From down, we push it up. Again it up we bring it down. It repeats all the time. It is an endless process. To give an example, I have a fear of blood pressure. For the time being it is controlled and that fear ends but not forever. At the same time comes the fear of sugar. Another example, I have a fear of bank installments, so I paid them. Again comes the mortgage.