--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It was a deal I’d made with myself months…" description: "\"“It was a deal I’d made with myself months before and the only thing that allowed me to hike alone. I knew that if I allowed fear to overtake me, my jo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e3/cheryl-strayed-605_bravery_it-was-a-deal-i-d-made-with-myself-month_2609459.jpg" --- # It was a deal I’d made with myself months before and the… ![“It was a deal I’d made with myself months before and the only thing that allowed me to hike alone. I knew that if I allowed fear to overtake me, my journey was doomed. Fear, to a great extent, is born of a story we tell ourselves, and so I chose to tell myself a different story from the one women…” quote by Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e3/cheryl-strayed-605_bravery_it-was-a-deal-i-d-made-with-myself-month_2609459.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e3/cheryl-strayed-605_bravery_it-was-a-deal-i-d-made-with-myself-month_2609459.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e3/cheryl-strayed-605_bravery_it-was-a-deal-i-d-made-with-myself-month_2609459.jpg) > ““It was a deal I’d made with myself months before and the only thing that allowed me to hike alone. I knew that if I allowed fear to overtake me, my journey was doomed. Fear, to a great extent, is born of a story we tell ourselves, and so I chose to tell myself a different story from the one women are told. And I decided I was safe. I was strong. I was brave. Nothing could vanquish me. Insisting on this story was a form of mind control, but for the most part, it worked. Every time I heard a sound of unknown origin or felt something horrible cohering in my imagination I pushed it away. I simply did not let myself become afraid. Fear begets fear. Power begets power. I willed myself to beget power. And it wasn’t long before I actually wasn’t afraid.”” [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator confronts fear by rewriting her internal narrative, using self‑affirmation as mental control to continue hiking alone. **In simple terms:** She beats fear by telling herself she is safe, strong, and brave. Key Takeaway Rewrite your inner story to overcome fear. Themes self‑belief mental resilience adventure mind control Mood determined empowered Type motivational inspirational When to use this quote - solo hiking - personal challenges - mental health - creative projects Key Concepts Narrative therapy self‑affirmation psychological empowerment Questions to Reflect On - How can you change the story you tell yourself about danger? - What limits does self‑affirmation have? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Allowed Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/allowed-fear-1908087/) [Begets Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/begets-fear-246716/) [Bravery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bravery/) [Different story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/different-story/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Fear Begets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear-begets-246715/) [Fear Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear-power/) [Mind control](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind-control/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/) [Wasn Afraid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wasn-afraid/) ## Related quotes > [“I knew that if I allowed fear to overtake me, my journey was doomed. 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Power begets power.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/fear-begets-fear-power-begets-power/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“I knew that if I allowed fear to overtake me, my journey was doomed. Fear, to a great extent, is born of a story…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/i-knew-that-if-i-allowed-fear-to-overtake-me-my-journey-was-doomed-3/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [I knew that if I allowed fear to overtake me, my journey was doomed. 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Fear must be faced and gone through.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-mcwilliams/running-from-fear-only-strengthens-fear-you-are-demonstrating-that/) [Peter McWilliams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-mcwilliams/) ## More by Cheryl Strayed > [“She understands that attention is the first and final act of love, and that the ultimate dwindling resource in the human arrangement isn’t cheap…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/she-understands-that-attention-is-the-first-and-final-act-of-love-and/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“The most terrible and beautiful and interesting things happen in life. For some of you, those things have already happened. Whatever happens to you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/the-most-terrible-and-beautiful-and-interesting-things-happen-in-life/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [Of course you want someone special to love you. 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Without it, life has little meaning. It's the best thing we have to give and the most valuable thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/love-is-our-essential-nutrient-without-it-life-has-little-meaning-it/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“I never believed the boys were angry. I believed they were hurt and anger was the safest manifestation of their sorrow. It was the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/i-never-believed-the-boys-were-angry-i-believed-they-were-hurt-and/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“It’s wrong that this is required of you. It’s wrong that your son died. It will always be wrong.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/it-s-wrong-that-this-is-required-of-you-it-s-wrong-that-your-son-died/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“Your ultimatum is simple. It’s fair. And it’s stating your own intentions, not what you hope theirs will be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/your-ultimatum-is-simple-it-s-fair-and-it-s-stating-your-own/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“We aren't poor," my mother said, again and again. "Because we're rich in love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/we-aren-t-poor-my-mother-said-again-and-again-because-we-re-rich-in/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) [Explore all 450 Cheryl Strayed quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) ## More Bravery quotes > [Not everyone is capable of madness; and of those lucky enough to be capable, not many have the courage for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-strindberg/not-everyone-is-capable-of-madness-and-of-those-lucky-enough-to-be/) [August Strindberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-strindberg/) > [“How could we explain that standing on a stage and speaking someone else's words as if they are your own is less an act…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-l-rio/how-could-we-explain-that-standing-on-a-stage-and-speaking-someone/) [M.L. Rio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-l-rio/) > [There are those that say, if you do the uncomfortable thing long enough, it will become comfortable. But we are really not encouragers of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-hicks/there-are-those-that-say-if-you-do-the-uncomfortable-thing-long/) [Esther Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-hicks/) > [Courage is the skill of being the only one who knows your scared to death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/courage-is-the-skill-of-being-the-only-one-who-knows-your-scared-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Fearing our confrontations is one thing... facing them unarmed is a completely different matter.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-w-boyer-2/fearing-our-confrontations-is-one-thing-facing-them-unarmed-is-a/) [Mark W. Boyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-w-boyer-2/) > [Bravery is the capacity to perform properly even when scared half to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/bravery-is-the-capacity-to-perform-properly-even-when-scared-half-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [To be able to live and train in Iraq under these circumstances you need to be brave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-able-to-live-and-train-in-iraq-under-these-circumstances-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Every person has the power to change their fate if they are brave enough to fight for what they desire more than anything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-garber/every-person-has-the-power-to-change-their-fate-if-they-are-brave/) [Stephanie Garber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-garber/) > [The terrorists-those nineteen people, with hundreds or maybe thousands behind them-did the worst thing you can possibly imagine. But tens of millions people did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/the-terrorists-those-nineteen-people-with-hundreds-or-maybe-thousands/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [All the world's bravery that delights our eyes is but thy several liveries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-cowley/all-the-world-s-bravery-that-delights-our-eyes-is-but-thy-several/) [Abraham Cowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-cowley/) > [“We were taught to be good, and we were taught to be careful. 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