Fighting fear is a lucrative industry. The US personal development market is projected to be worth over $13 billion by 2022, and niche organizations focusing on fearless living and courage coaching have cropped up within it. “Master fear,” these gurus advise. “Re-wire your fear-based habits!” But is the mastery of fear a worthwhile goal? Fear is a survival mechanism—a protection against the threat of physical violence, but also an internal GPS guiding us away from people and things that don’t serve us and reminding us to live life to its fullest.1 So a healthy dose of fear can actually do a world of good. This story is from Kinfolk Issue Forty Buy Now Related Stories Arts & Culture Issue 49 Correction: Clutter A tidy room does not always beget a tidy mind. Arts & Culture Issue 47 Correction: The Starving Artist Bad times don’t always make for good art. Arts & Culture Issue 45 Correction: Spontaneous Generation A curious theory about the origins of life. Arts & Culture Issue 44 Correction Wikipedia is good, actually. Arts & Culture Issue 39 Correction Teenagers aren't lazy, they're exhausted. Arts & Culture Issue 38 Correction Don’t be fooled by spurious data.
Arts & Culture Issue 45 Correction: Spontaneous Generation A curious theory about the origins of life.
