I remember hearing a speaker (I’m not sure who to be honest as I’ve heard so many) say, “On the other side of your fear are your biggest rewards.”
This quote reminds me about the importance of dealing with your emotions. Here’s another honest Stu fact: I am an anxious person but I don’t think that I suffer from anxiety.
I also sometimes feel down but I don’t think I would label myself as depressed. I think we all have a lot of emotions that we don’t always know how to deal with. We sometimes just don’t want to deal with them because it’s hard. It may be easier to just say you have depression or anxiety rather than try and find the real reason or cause for those feelings. Like most things in life, we want either quick results or easy answers.
A lesson I learned is that everything good takes time – Without exception. Wether it’s in business, health, relationships, or whatever you are looking to accomplish. It takes effort to figure out the best way forward. Often it’s a winding bumpy road.
Please note, I am not saying there aren’t people who are suffering from actual depression and anxiety; there are for sure. It’s 100% legitimate.
What I am saying is that we need to stop thinking the worst, and start considering that our moments of fear and our anxious thoughts could just be that – Moments. We almost would prefer to give ourselves a label; so we can say I suffer from anxiety rather than I had an experience of being anxious. Being sad, fearful, or anxious are natural human feelings. You’re not abnormal.
I remember one time flying home from Calgary. It was a four hour long journey. I was visibly stressed as the turbulence was more than usual. When it settled an hour in, the flight attendant made an effort to chat with me. He said, “Did you know that no commercial airline has ever been brought down by turbulence, ever?” I was shocked to hear that. I watched LOST, so there was that one! He went on to say, “Do you think twice when you drive your car on gravel road? This is what turbulence is, a gravel road in the sky.”
This was a game changer for me. I am not saying it fixed everything, but it changed my perception of this particular “anxiety”.
Now, I look at my feelings about flying as manageable and have actually become a little excited about flying. I still get a little anxious every time we take off, but I would never say I suffer from actual anxiety. That would be an excuse and I think you know how I feel about
victim speak.
We need to start looking at our lives and the decisions we make as moments, not as actual “life or death” choices. For many of us they could be more like speed bumps; making us look twice or forcing us to breathe deeply before taking a risk. We shouldn’t avoid the opportunity because we might fail, or in my example the (very) remote chance we could have a dramatic, rare plane crash.
Here’s the bottom line: If I had listened to the fears in my head I would not be have accomplished what I have. I wouldn’t have started
YLCC. There are lives that have been forever changed because I took that risk. This year I will take another dozen GIANT risks like
EPIC, our first adults only program. It’s a HUGE risk, but I am choosing to think about the potential rewards if and when I am successful.
So, what are you avoiding because of your fear of failing, risks, or negative results? Now imagine if you just did it, what would happen if you did. Do yourself a favour, write a “what if” list: What if I succeeded at __________.
Really think big. It could change your life and the lives of others.
In leadership and gratitude,
