The Fear Bubble: Harness Fear and Live Without Limits

Product Information

Whatever Brownie points I might give him for being honest about the above I would take away for his hypocrisy as he relentlessly sneers at 'tourist' climbers who are ill-prepared for the task.

The people who love you will offer you constructive criticism, because they want you to be the best version of yourself that you can be. They know you’re better than that. They know what you’re worth. They’re not having a pop because they want to bring you down a peg or two.”I also liked how he gave real life examples of people he meets and when he gives them advise he doesn’t claim that those people are now the happiest people in the world. Powerful, unflinching and an inspirational call to action,The Fear Bubbleis essential reading for anyone who wants to push themselves further, harness their fears and conquer their own personal Everests. Another component of “the fear bubble” is redefining the feeling of fear as the body saying “let’s go”. As each fear bubble is entered saying to ourselves “let’s go” will help to positively reframe the fear, and trigger the action required. For me personally it was thoroughly enjoyable, I actually haven’t read his first book, or know much about him until I read this, which 3/4 in, led me to binge on some of his ‘SASwhodareswins’ tv series. I liked the way he interweaves his experience on Mt. Everest with explaining the three different kinds of fear. Also how he gives us normal life examples, as probably most of us won’t climb Everest any time soon.

Middleton is no stranger to fear: from working as a point man in the Special Forces, he faced and overcame fear daily, never knowing what lay ahead. In prison, he was separated from friends and family, with an uncertain future. More recently, at the top of Mount Everest, in life-threatening conditions, he confronted his bigger fear, of leaving his wife widowed and children without a father. And at the top of Everest, in desperate, life-threatening conditions, he was forced to face up to his greatest fear, of leaving his wife and children without a husband and father. In his groundbreaking new book, Ant Middleton thrillingly retells the story of his death-defying climb of Everest and reveals the concept of the Fear Bubble, showing how it can be used in our lives to help us break through our limits. Not to take away from his first book, but for me, this was so much more than I expected and really resonated with me. Ant explains the mindsets needed to succeed, to grow, thrive and how to use them to not only survive in the most dangerous physical challenge, but the his most dangerous and constant enemy, himself.

Take bungee jumpers for example. They’re initially terrified of taking a jump but as soon as they swing into action, they’re instantly elated. They want to do another jump and another jump. What’s happening is they’re going into a fear bubble, busting it and hitting the adrenaline bus. The bus is then pushing them to go into another bubble, and when they do go into another bubble, they’re still going to experience whole new gut wrenching dread just before they leap. But this time, they know that as soon as they pierce it, they’re going to get an instant reward. Unfortunately, I felt that his attitude during the climb made him come across as disrespectful to those he was with, a spoilt brat and an arrogant human who did not want to listen to others, especially when they were more experienced. The book seemed clumsily put together and could have been better edited to remove the repetition of the same concepts. I’m surprised at how popular this book has become and disappointed that it wasn’t better. At its best, this told a compelling account of Ant’s journey up Everest which was tense and at times emotional. I like the idea of the fear bubble technique too. Those were the parts I enjoyed.

In prison, he was thrust into the unknown, cut off from friends and family, isolated with thoughts of failure and dread for his future. From the moment the future fear bubble is imagined, there is an acceptance that no fear is needed until stepping into the actual fear bubble at the future event. Without fear, there's no challenge. Without challenge, there's no growth. Without growth, there's no life. It’s like I’m two different people. That’s why I think it’s crucial that you don’t define yourself as just one person. That, to me, is the sign of a fake. It’s the sign of someone who has this fantasy model of who they want everyone to think they are and just tries to act up to it all the time. When you’re true to yourself you know that you’re a different person in different situations, and you’re totally relaxed about it.” Since leaving the military, he has become best known as the star of the international hit TV show SAS: Who Dares Wins.In his groundbreaking new book, Ant Middleton thrillingly retells the story of his death-defying climb of Everest and reveals the concept of the Fear Bubble, showing how it can be used in our lives to help us break through our limits. Powerful, unflinching and an inspirational call to action, The Fear Bubble is essential reading for anyone who wants to push themselves further, harness their fears and conquer their own personal Everests. This is not just a self help book on overcoming fear, but also part memoir using examples from Ant's life both in and outside the military with the main thread being him attempt to climb Everest. Middleton is a great example of a man who practices what he preaches. He doesn’t shy away from the tough topics and uses his own personal history to showcase how he’s developed and successfully utilised his fear bubble philosophy. His no excuses mantra and his openness to share his own story and struggles makes this a great read. Highly recommended. Still, it had some laughs. YOU ARE KAYLEIGH FROM LIVERPOOL was a particular high point alongside the many, many references to his height which is clearly, ironically, his Everest. In his account of climbing Everest, he comes across as a bloody-minded egoist who is prepared to put his team mates at risk by failing to prepare properly as well as going on a 4-day bender immediately before the climb on the grounds that he has 'unusual levels of resilience'.