Cheryl Strayed: How to Turn Fear into Your Companion

Wild author Cheryl Strayed thought she had lost everything after her mother died and her marriage fell apart. She made an impulsive decision: Without any prior experience, she set about hiking 1,100 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail over the course of three months. Many would consider her to be fearless, but Cheryl says there is no such thing.

"You will never get rid of fear," she says. "I think a better way of looking at it is learning how to live with your fear. How do you make fear your companion? How do you turn this thing that has held you back into something that's right there beside you?"

Watch her explain how to create a subtle—yet radical—shift in thinking that will help you begin to embrace the possibility of failure.

More from Help Desk