Something that characterizes many of my anxious and stressed clients is a drive to achieve. It is usually around work - a drive to go up a career ladder, to complete bigger and better projects, pass ever higher exams - but sometimes it's about relationships, being a good mother, a good husband, a good person. Unfortunately a common companion of this desire to achieve is a fear of failure. Hence the stress. The question is, why is achievement so important to many of us? What is at stake here? This week's tip explores. When I was eight years old I knitted a scarf. It was a project at my primary school, where the uniform was grey and red. The scarf was to be red. As it was the first t