Think about some of the most important achievements in human history. These would include such feats as Amelia Earhart flying solo from Hawaii to the U.S. mainland, Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay climbing Mount Everest, Neil Armstrong setting foot on the moon, Magellan setting sail around the world, and many thousands of others who faced their fears and took action anyway.

You and I are no different. We have challenges and scary things staring us right in the face every single day. You can probably think of something that intimidates you as a writer. Is it setting up a website? Publishing a book? Pitching an article to a large publication? Writing and publishing a short story?

Whatever is it, run toward it. If you want to do it, but you feel scared, that is your subconscious mind telling you it must be done, no matter how you feel about it.

If you only do what feels comfortable, you won’t make any progress. You won’t grow. Progress and growth are predicated on the act of doing what scares you. So put on your big boy or big girl pants and start moving forward. You’ll figure it out as you go along. And as soon as you overcome this challenge, there will be a bigger one waiting just behind it. But this time, you’ll be better equipped to face your fears head-on.