The Fear Project: What Our Most Primal Emotion Taught Me About Survival, Success, Surfing . . . and Love
Jaimal Yogis
Language: English
Pages: 272
ISBN: 1609611756
Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub
An epic adventure full of incredible characters, death-defying athletic achievement, and bleeding edge science, THE FEAR PROJECT began with one question: how can we overcome our fears to reach our full potential?
Who among us has not been paralyzed by fear? In The Fear Project, award-winning journalist and surfer Jaimal Yogis sets out to better understand fear-why does it so often dominate our lives, what makes it tick, and is there even a way to use it to our advantage? In the process, he plunges readers into great white shark-infested waters, brings them along to surf 40+ foot waves in the dead of winter, and gives them access to some of the world's best neuroscience labs, psychologists, and extreme athletes. In this entertaining, often laugh-out-loud narrative, Yogis also treats himself like a guinea pig for all of his research, pushing his own fears repeatedly to the limits-in his sport, in his life, and in love. Ultimately, Yogis shares with his readers the best strategies to emerge triumphant from even the most paralyzing of fears.
THE FEAR PROJECT gives readers insight into the following:
- How fear evolved in the human brain
- How to tell the difference between "good fear" and "bad fear"
- How to use the latest neuroscience to transform fear memories
- Why fear spreads between us and how to counteract fearful "group think"
- How to turn fear into a performance enhancer - athletically and at work
In pursuing this terrifying-and often thrilling-journey with Yogis, we learn how to move through fear and unlock a sense of renewed possibility and a more rewarding life.
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especially, so his body was starting to devour itself, leading to near kidney failure. There was no physical reason he should have been able to push through the pain and keep going. The next day we visit Jamie in the hospital. He’s a doughboy, fattened with fluids, but he’s smiling and joking as usual. I ask him how he felt during the swim. “Those last 5 miles were the worst of my life,” he says. “But the first 40, wow—and what a sunrise.” True to form, Jamie is already thinking about his next
line: “Fear causes hesitation, and hesitation will cause your worst fears to come true.” You certainly have to know your limits in surfing in order not to put yourself into situations that are too far above your ability level. But once you’re out there, total commitment is the only way to succeed. Twice I’ve been injured fairly badly, and both times it was because I froze up at the crest of a wave and fell in a stiff, awkward position. If I try to paddle in, I might find myself right in the
after what seemed like just 15 minutes. I thought of that old Alcatraz guide scaring me as a kid. If he could see me now. What a— I heard a motor. “How you guys doin’?” The man in the wooden skiff had returned. “Good, thanks. Yep, we’re pretty good.” “Let me ask you something: What are you gonna do if a freighter comes through?” Oh, come on. He followed us out here to tell us this? We were doing fine. We were with Jamie Patrick, world-class Ironman! I looked at Jamie, hoping for a
clear conscience.” 13. (p. 137) 2 minutes to 4 minutes: Four minutes may sound like a long time to hold your breath, but it’s child’s play to professional free-divers. Stephan Misfud, a free-diver and the current world-record holder in static apnea, held his breath for 11 minutes and 35 seconds in 2009. From our aqueous past, humans have retained a bit of the so-called mammalian reflex that, among other things, makes our hearts begin to slow as soon as our faces hit cold water, allowing us to
http://www.wallacejnichols.org/122/bluemind.html. I have to personally thank Wallace J. Nichols for asking me to speak at the 2011 Bluemind conference with Stanford neuroscientist Philippe Goldin. It was my first introduction to Philippe, who ended up helping immensely with this book. 8. (p. 168) Than the brains of normal folks: See Rawson’s explanation of meth and dopamine and an image of a meth user’s brain at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/meth/body/methbrainnoflash.html. 9. (p.