Fear is nothing more than a negative habit. It’s a powerful reframe that turns a monster into a manageable problem. Once you see it as a habit, you can break it, just like any other.
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Meaning
At its core, this quote means that fear isn’t a fixed part of your personality or an unchangeable reality. It’s a mental loop, a pattern you’ve learned to run, often without even realizing it.
Explanation
Let me break this down because it’s a game-changer. We tend to treat fear as this big, external beast that attacks us. But Tracy is saying, no, it’s not an external force. It’s an internal script. Think about it. The hesitation before a big pitch, the dread of a cold call, the anxiety about a negotiation… it’s the same mental pathway firing every single time. It’s a habit. And the beautiful, empowering thing about habits? They can be rewritten. You can’t just wish a beast away, but you can absolutely replace a bad habit with a good one through conscious, consistent effort. You practice courage instead.
Quote Summary
Reading Level38
Aesthetic Score70
Origin & Factcheck
This comes straight from Brian Tracy’s 2002 book, Be a Sales Superstar. You’ll sometimes see this idea, or something very similar, floating around and attributed to other motivational figures. But the specific phrasing, “Fear is nothing more than a negative habit of mind,” is Tracy’s, born from his work in sales and peak performance training.
Attribution Summary
Author Bio
Brian Tracy, a prolific author gained global reputation because of his best seller book list such as Eat That Frog!, Goals!, and The Psychology of Selling, and created influential audio programs like The Psychology of Achievement. He is sought after guru for personal development and business performance. Brian Tracy International, coaches millions of professionals and corporates on sales, goal setting, leadership, and productivity.
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Where is this quotation located?
| Quotation | Fear is nothing more than a negative habit of mind |
| Book Details | Publication Year: 2003; ISBN: 978-1-57675-273-9; Latest Edition: AMACOM, 2003; Number of Pages: 128. |
| Where is it? | Chapter 9: Commitment to Excellence, Approximate page from 2003 edition: 67 |
Context
In the book, he’s talking directly to salespeople facing rejection and tough markets. He’s not addressing clinical phobias; he’s tackling the day-to-day fears that kill productivity and commission checks—fear of rejection, fear of failure, fear of sounding foolish. He frames it as the single biggest obstacle to sales success.
Usage Examples
So how do you actually use this? It’s a mental tool.
- For a sales team: Before role-playing a difficult client, I have them literally say, “My fear of this conversation is just a habit. My new habit is confident curiosity.” It sounds simple, but it changes the entire dynamic.
- For an entrepreneur pitching investors: Instead of thinking “I’m terrified,” the shift is to “My mind is habitually predicting disaster. I’m going to habitually focus on the value I’m providing.” It moves you from passenger to pilot.
- For anyone with imposter syndrome: That feeling of being “found out” is a deeply ingrained mental habit of self-doubt. Recognizing it as such is the first step to building a new habit of self-validation based on your actual skills and achievements.
To whom it appeals?
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Motivation Score82
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FAQ
Question: Is all fear just a habit? What about legitimate danger?
Answer: Great question, and it’s a crucial distinction. This quote is about psychological fear—the anxiety and dread about future events that probably won’t hurt you. The fear of public speaking won’t kill you, but the fear of a speeding car? That’s instinctual, biological fear. That’s different. Tracy is talking about the former, the kind that holds us back in business and life.
Question: How long does it take to break this “fear habit”?
Answer: It’s not an overnight fix. Like any habit, it takes consistent awareness and repetition. You might have to “act as if” you’re confident a dozen times before the new neural pathway feels stronger than the old one. But the moment you label it a “habit,” you take away its power and make it a manageable project.
Question: Can this apply to things like social anxiety?
Answer: Absolutely. While severe cases need professional support, for many, social anxiety is a pattern of negative self-talk and catastrophic forecasting—”They won’t like me, I’ll have nothing to say.” That’s a textbook negative mental habit. The principle of replacing that internal dialogue is the same.
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