Fear Factor: Finding Strength in the Things That Scare Us
How Halloween’s haunted houses, ghosts, and monsters can teach us to face the fears that follow us into everyday life.
Published: Oct 18, 2026
For much of the year, we tend to steer clear of anything that makes our pulse quicken or sends shivers up our spines. Most of us are hardwired to spot threats and keep our distance from whatever might hurt us.
Yet come October, we go looking for the very sensations we spend the remaining 11 months dodging: haunted houses, horror movies, and stories about ghosts, monsters, and things that go bump in the night. We pay good money to be scared, and then we call it fun.
There’s a reason we enjoy those scares, of course — we know we’re safe. The monster jumping out from behind the door can’t really hurt us, and the movie will eventually end, so we get to feel the thrill of fear without any of the consequences.
In real life, though, no one promises us a safe exit, and the possibility of getting hurt or making a mistake can be frightening. Sometimes that fear helps us make smart decisions, but it can keep us from doing the things that might make our lives better.
I believe Halloween offers a useful lesson about facing our fears. We willingly walk into haunted houses, curious about what’s waiting inside. What if we approached some of our real-life fears with that same curiosity? We might find they’re less scary than we imagined.
Confronting the ghosts of the past
We all have a few ghosts from our past, whether we believe in the supernatural or not. They might appear in a familiar song that recalls a long-lost friendship or an old photo that takes us back to a moment we wish we’d handled differently. Sometimes a chance encounter stirs up feelings we thought we’d put behind us.
When those memories bring back regrets or painful experiences, fear can keep us from doing anything about them. We may be reluctant to reopen an old conversation or acknowledge a mistake, so we leave things unresolved, hoping time will take care of them.
I remember a conversation I had with Scare Your Soul author Scott Simon, who believes people can confront fear by taking small steps. “I learned that focusing on the action, not the outcome, is key,” he told me. Sometimes that action might be as modest as picking up the phone.
We begin to make peace with the ghosts of our past by facing them instead of fearing them. In doing so, we may find the courage to act — and finally put them to rest.
Facing the monsters of our future
If ghosts represent the things from our past that haunt us, monsters might be the frightening possibilities we imagine in our future. As adults, we can be very good at dreaming them up.
Think about a new opportunity you’ve been weighing or a difficult conversation you’ve been putting off. Before anything has happened, you’ve already imagined how badly it could go, and a small uncertainty has grown into something menacing.
I’ve met my share of these monsters over the years, whether it was a risky business decision or a problem that seemed bigger the longer I thought about it. I’ve found it helpful to ask questions when something feels intimidating: What do I actually know, and what am I just imagining?
The answer doesn’t make the fear disappear, but it can help us see the situation more clearly. After all, the monster lurking in the shadows often looks quite different once we turn on the light. Sometimes the only way to turn on the light is to take the first step toward whatever we’ve been afraid to face.
Finding strength in fear
Think about how you feel walking into a haunted house. Your heart races and your palms sweat as you wonder what’s waiting around the next corner. It’s an uncomfortable feeling, yet somehow we find the courage to keep going.
That same nervous feeling often accompanies the things we most want to do. We may be uncertain about how they’ll turn out, but taking the first step can give us the confidence to take another. And sometimes the anticipation turns out to be worse than the experience itself.
So this Halloween, as you enjoy the thrills and chills of the season, give some thought to a fear you’ve been avoiding. Perhaps it’s time to open that door. You may discover that taking the first step was the hardest part.
All the best,
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Written by 1-800-Flowers.com Founder and Chairman, the Celebrations Pulse letters aim to engage with our community. By welcoming your ideas and sharing your stories, we want to help you strengthen your relationships with the most important people in your life.
AUTHOR
Jim McCann is the founder and chairman of 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Inc. as well as a business leader, author, and philanthropist with a passion for helping people deliver smiles. Devoted to helping others, he also founded Smile Farms, a 501(c)3 organization that provides meaningful jobs in agricultural settings to young adults and adults with developmental disabilities.
