You know that feeling you get when you have to do something you’re not looking forward to? It’s a dull, sickening sensation that makes you want to ignore it or run away—anything but take it on because you fear or dread it. Yeah, that feeling is bad news.

Now, you may not have noticed, but the physiological experience of that awful feeling and what you feel when you’re excited about something is actually very similar. Sweaty palms, rapid heartbeat, shallow breathing and racing mind. If you fear something, you experience it with caution and dread. If you’re excited, you experience it with pleasurable anticipation. Either way, your physical reaction is virtually the same.

Since the two feelings of fear and excitement are almost opposite, how could be they be so similar? They are definitely not the same; so what IS the difference? Good question. Here it is: what separates the two is your mental perspective—how you view something. If you view it as pleasurable, then you will want to engage in it. If you view the same thing as not pleasurable, you’ll approach it with dread. That means you can actually convert your fearful apprehension to excited anticipation by simply thinking about it differently.

Here’s the big “so what:” whatever you have before you that you’ve been putting off because it’s distasteful or creates anxiety in you, can be transferred to something positive. For instance,

When you have to make a presentation or speech.

When you have to have a hard conversation with someone.

When you have to slog through a dreaded task, like billing.

When you have to confront a difficult client.

Try it and see what happens. From then on, it will be your choice whether to engage something in trepidation or anticipation.