Issue 023: Is Fear Real?

“You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face.”
– Eleanor Roosevelt

Have you looked at a photo and instantly you’re taken back to that moment in time?

This past week a photo memory from 2013 surfaced in my social feed. I remembered how heavy my legs felt as I climbed the first of seven extremely high towers on the Hummingbird Zip Line Course. The same heaviness some people experienced when they picked up the phone to make a cold call. The sweat gathered on the palms of my hands as I held the oversized palm-padded leather gloves. And that little voice said, “This sounded like a better idea when I was sitting in my home office in Pittsburgh.”

Once I zipped to the second tower, there would be no return because the land and lake below became inhabitable for humans.

Have you had one of those little voices that make you second guess your decision? Or maybe there’s an action you dread doing? I’ve watched would-be authors endlessly revise their manuscripts to avoid publishing for fear of what others might say. I’ve seen a brilliant innovator stay in a routine day job because the thought of failure stopped him.

As the adventure guide locked my full-body harness to the safety line, I asked myself, “What could happen?” Okay, it wasn’t the best question. Considering I was in a swampy section of Gulf Shore State Park, Alabama, scanning Lake Shelby, which probably held a gator…or a hundred. One would think the gators or falling was the reason my nerves were stretched. Nada. It was following all the directions from watching the guide at the other end signaling to lift the feet higher to get more speed so I didn’t get stuck and have to pull myself to the next tower. Or watch for the signal to skim the cable with the gloved hand to slow down so I didn’t ram into the tower.

When fear isn’t reasonable, be proactive.

1. Take the first step. That first step is always the hardest whether it’s making your first cold call, asking for the sale, getting a rejection, or putting yourself out there—the imagination catastrophizes the situation. Each step after gets easier because the “fight, flight, or freeze brain alert” knows you did it once safely so it’s okay to repeat. By the seventh zipline tower, ziplining felt like an everyday activity.

2. Flip your emotions. Rather than concentrating on the nervousness, focus on the excitement. Say, “I’m excited.” Imagine the exhilaration you’ll feel after you accomplished the goal, mission, or adventure.

3. Walk up and jump. Mel Robbins uses the 5-second countdown. If you give yourself five seconds to count, your mind can catastrophize a lot. Skip the countdown, jump. Pick up the phone and say hello. Walk over to the executive and introduce yourself.

Momentum Questions

1. What have you wanted to try, yet something always stops you?

2. What experience could you have that can add another layer of confidence?

3. What’s the one thing you can do today to look fear in the face?

As I zipped down that first line, the adrenaline rush zipped through my body, and as I’m here to write this Chronicles edition, you know the gators didn’t get me. 

Until next time, have a Bounce-Up™ day!

Mj

P.S. Check out the strategies to stay positive I share with Clare Kumar, the Productivity Coach.