Cool Cat Teacher Blog is at coolcatteacher.com

"I don't know how else to make a movie except to find some aspect of the experience that I haven't done before," he says. "Because if I've done it before,  I'm fearless , and I don't work well when I'm fearless." Steven Spielberg, when interviewed about making the movie Lincoln.  Oprah, Spielberg, Daniel Day-Lewis Talk About 'Lincoln' (VIDEO) I think it is hard for many people to realize that fear is a natural part of being innovative. If you do ANYTHING at all, fear is often part of that.  Every time we start a Flat Classroom project , every time I get ready to get in front of an audience, really, even, every time I get up to meet my day and kiss my husband and kids goodbye, there is an element of fear in my life.  But fear can't and shouldn't paralyze us. The existence of fear isn't what cripples us, it is the preeminence of fear and the resulting paralysis that can cause us to be unable to function. ...

Rolling along happily, it always hits from out of nowhere. It may be an email, it may be those recent book reviews I have for book #2 or it could just be the offhand comment of a well meaning person: Is fear holding you back on your life journey? "You don't need to have a book signing because I'm not sure if anyone normal wants your book." "You are wasting your time releasing a book that Barnes and Noble or Books a Million won't stock on their shelves. Why would you waste your life like that?"  "You write to much about ... "You need to...  you... you... you... you...." I think the problem here is "you" or in my case "me." When we focus on ourselves and all of the things we may or may not do right or when we focus on trying to anticipate how we will be perceived by others it is easy to become paralyzed. Paralyzed with Irrational Fear I've had some laptop RAM sitting on my desk for two weeks out ...