About Hug Your Fear & Varonica

Photo: 3.12 Photography - Liz McEachern Hall
Photo: 3.12 Photography – Liz McEachern Hall

Do you have something that you’ve been dreaming of doing? Do you feel terrified? Stuck? Low on confidence?

You’re in the right place!

My name is Varonica, and my mission at Hug Your Fear is to inspire, encourage, support and teach people who struggle with fear and low self-confidence how to take steps towards their dreams anyway.

Life is short.

The fear never totally goes away.

But I’m here to tell and show you that you can do whatever it is that you’ve been dreaming of doing before you figure out how to become fearless.

I’ve used what I share to:

– quit my job without another one lined up to explore and try new things
– reconnect with my father after almost 30 years of not having a relationship
– go to conferences, workshops, concerts and more on my own and actually enjoy them
– make connections with interesting people around the world without going to tons of networking events

– and my list continues to grow

And it’s not just me. I’ve interviewed lots of people who have also gone for their dreams in spite of fear.

Their experiences range from:
quitting their job to travel around the world
starting a clothing boutique on the side
packing up and going on the road to interview people about their love stories
writing and publishing their first book
leaving life as an American Buddhist monk in Germany to travel to India with no plans other than to explore
– and much more!

And in case you’re sitting there trying to separate yourself from these people or me with an “I’m not brave like that!” let me put you at ease. All of these people, myself included, were terrified before and during their risks. Most of them even doubted whether they were capable of doing what they set out to do. But all of them had this in common and it is what I am most passionate about teaching you.

They:
-Felt afraid
-Took action despite their fear
-Built their confidence along the way
-Ultimately reached their goal, stronger, wiser and happier for the effort

So stay a while and learn how to make your dream a reality. And if this really resonated with you, sign up for email updates and get the free guide, 10 Ways to Be Stronger Than Your Fear!


And if you have any questions, comments or are in need of some help moving through fear to make your dreams a reality, contact me here.

And speaking of me, who exactly am I?

Photo: 3.12 Photography - Liz McEachern Hall
Photo: 3.12 Photography – Liz McEachern Hall

I’m a writer, dreamer and fearful action taker who deeply cares about issues of self-love, empowerment, personal fulfillment and emotional well-being.

I also like to be silly so here are some fun facts about me:

1. I spent kindergarten through eighth grade in a bilingual (English/Spanish) program at school. I should be fluent, but I let my Spanish skills get rusty. I did take Algebra in Spanish if that makes up for it!

 2. Finding out I was an introvert changed my life completely. So much self-hate disappeared after I read The Introvert Advantage and Introvert Power. I fully recommend those books to any of my introverted Fear Huggers out there!*

 3. I like talking about death, thinking about death and reading or watching things about death. Death is one of my top motivations that helps me move through fear.

 4. I LOVE Disney World! I went for the first time when I was 5 and in the last few years have been going every other year. My favorite ride: The Haunted Mansion.

 5. I have a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a concentration in Accounting and a minor in Psychology (say that three times fast!). For my Psych minor, my friend and I trained a rat to press a certain lever in a box for food. Plus I had the pleasure of picking up the feisty, albino rat at least 2 times each class to do the experiments. The year after that, they stopped using live rats in favor of virtual ones! Go figure!

 6. I have little problem going places alone (conferences, concerts, workshops, dinner, retreat centers). If I want to go and no one else does, or I just feel like taking a solo trip, I will do it. People seem to think this is strange or that I’m fearless. I think it’s just an only child/introvert thing mixed in with lots of practice putting myself out there.

 7. I got my driver’s license at age 30 and wrote about it here.

 8. After 9 years of working in a pretty predictable fashion after graduating from my university, I quit my job without another one lined up to explore and try new things. Scariest and most exciting thing I’ve ever done and am still doing!

 9. I rarely watch movies that aren’t documentaries and I mostly read non-fiction books.

 10. I write in my journal every single day, multiple times a day. Writing is how I make sense of the world and myself. I have journals going back to childhood and it’s such a privilege to see what I was thinking and going through back then until now.

 11. I’m pretty tall (5’10”). Suggestions on places to buy affordable pants that cover my ankles are welcome!

*The links to the books mentioned here are affiliate links, which means that if you follow the link and decide to buy, I will get a small commission on the sale (it’ll cost you nothing extra). I only do this for resources that I’ve used or from those used by people I trust and if you like this blog, it’s a nice way to support the mission. Enjoy!

Photos by 3.12 Photography

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