Feel The F.E.A.R

Schools can be intimidating places to trainees, especially when a new placement is on the horizon.

The school may have a reputation and this can fuel anxiety. Our fear of the worst can cripple us and keep us from discovering what we never knew we had in us.

But in my experience, the reputation can be fake news or based on something from years ago and so we generate fear and manufacture myths.

There’s a name for this and it has an apt acronym: F.E.A.R: False Evidence Appearing Real.

Ideas about what something might be like can make them real even though they may have no real substance. This is bad news because we can start to get nervous and apprehensive and when you are about to start teaching in a new environment then “that ain’t good.”

It’s not just trainees but anyone starting a new job that can have the F.E.A.R and how our minds can weave together false tales of how situations will turn out. All meaningful transitions and changes will contain some component of fear.

But this is also important for sharing with children because they are full of fears and the unknown can hold them back if they allow their thoughts to get carried away. They need to know that fear is a natural reaction to challenge and we are not born with courage.

The most important thing to do is to let go of the fears and refuse to allow them any ability to dictate the actions you take and sabotage what in all likelihood is going to be a set of great experiences.

In classroom terms, this means cultivating a no-fear environment where it is safe to take risks, make mistakes and embrace failure.