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No. 314 · Your own mind · Human Nature and Judgement

Fear

Fear keeps us safe, but when it spreads it can create the very danger it warns of.

Fear is our response to perceived danger. It helps us survive, but it often fires at uncertain or exaggerated threats, and when many people panic together their defensive actions can cause the very crisis they fear.

To manage it, name the fear and check the evidence before acting. Set rules for scary moments while you're calm, focus on the next step you control, and be a steady presence for the people around you.

In the Almanac

“Fear itself”, 1933 · “Northern Rock”, 2007

Both stories in full, three ways to use it and where it misleads.

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Fear

Questions

What is Fear?

Fear is our response to perceived danger. It helps us survive, but it often fires at uncertain or exaggerated threats, and when many people panic together their defensive actions can cause the very crisis they fear.

How do you use Fear?

To manage it, name the fear and check the evidence before acting. Set rules for scary moments while you're calm, focus on the next step you control, and be a steady presence for the people around you.

When does Fear matter?

Fear is one of the 31 mental models for your own mind, the situations where you ask: Is my own thinking leading me astray? Within that, it belongs to “Feelings that steer you”, alongside Deprival-Superreaction Tendency, Freudian Slip and Influence of Stress.

What is an example of Fear?

Two stories show it at work: Fear itself (1933) and Northern Rock (2007). Both are told in full in The Mental Models Daily Almanac, which has two stories for each of its 365 models.

Which mental models are related to Fear?

Social Proof, Availability Bias and Chain Reaction. Fear itself comes from human nature and judgement.