Kids play all over a field with a fence and huddle in the middle of one without. Limits can make you brave.

Certainty about where the edges are is what frees you to use the whole space. Without a boundary, part of your attention stays occupied with the unknown limit, so you stay near the center where it feels safe. A rule you can see is often less restrictive than no rule at all.

Where you feel cautious, try defining the edge explicitly rather than leaving it vague. Say how much you can spend, how far you will go, what the consequence actually is. Once the fence is visible, most of the field turns out to be yours.