Thinking Beyond Fear by Emma

Thinking Beyond Fear by Emma - October 2018 Scholarship Essay

What if it is possible to make a machine that allows people to fly? Maybe the earth is not flat. Could a device be created that enables people to talk when they are far apart? Perhaps the sun does not orbit the Earth, but instead, the Earth orbits the sun. Is a force called gravity the reason that an apple falls from a tree?
These ideas are far from revolutionary today. But when they were first expressed, it was more than many people could wrap their mind around. The great thinkers who voiced these thoughts had wild ideas that they were willing to share, even at the risk of mockery. They dared to believe in more than what met the eye. They were thinking outside of the box.
So many of us live afraid. We fear saying what we truly think unless it is a commonly accepted belief. We hold back from dreaming and imagining possibilities that could result in ridicule. We are hesitant to explore questions that we do not have an answer to.
We are afraid to think outside the box.
We are not doing ourselves or anyone else a favor by being narrow minded. Nobody every changed the world by following what everyone else was doing. The great inventors, thinkers, explorers and leaders of history did not let fear stop them from exploring ideas that pushed them outside of their comfort zone. Why should we allow our insecurities to hold us back?
To me, thinking outside of the box is so much more than just being creative. It means daring to think beyond what meets the eye, and being willing to try and fail. It means believing in what I know to be true, not what someone told me what to believe in. It means opening my mind to possibilities that confuse and challenge me. It means overcoming fear.