Once recognized as the best woman extreme skier in the world (an honor she held for twelve years), Kristen Ulmer knows fear well. In this conversation-changing
book, she argues that fear is not an enemy here to cause us trouble. Instead, it’s our current reaction to this misunderstood emotion that leads to trouble, causing us to be at war with it, and thus at war with ourselves. It’s time to revolutionize our relationship with fear.

Ulmer explores why we have come to view fear as a negative, and the consequences of that perception. Informed by her years being “fearless” and more than fifteen years studying and teaching Zen, she goes on to unpack fear and shows that it’s just one of 10,000 voices that make up our reality, helping us come alive alongside joy, love, and gratitude. Introducing a mindfulness tool called “Shift,” Ulmer teaches us how to experience fear in a simpler, more authentic way, inviting us to be in conversation with it, transforming our relationship with this emotion from that of a draining battle into one of freedom.

In The Art of Fear, Ulmer shows us how to turn to fear in an honest, considerate way. Only by examining and then shifting our relationship with fear can we finally and permanently address its underlying restraints, and set ourselves on course to living a more grounded, vibrant, and authentic life.