You are going to have to deal with the fear of the unknown at every step of your personal growth but you are going to have to overcome the fear barrier. This episode is brought to you by my Goal Setting Guide. It is a free guide that you can download which will be available for you at the end of this blog. It is going to help you refine your goals and set them in such a way that they will be achievable and you will actually achieve success.

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When I was about six years old, the theme park or amusement park that was near my house opened up a new roller coaster. It was called The Thunderbolt. The Thunderbolt was the first roller coaster in Australia to do a full double loop, so you actually went upside down. I had been watching the advertisements and hearing my friends talk about it so I was desperate to go to Dreamworld and ride The Thunderbolt. One day my family finally got to go and I was looking forward to it. I could not talk about anything else other than this Thunderbolt ride. Well, we got there and the first challenge I had to overcome was I had to see if I was tall enough.

So I went up to the measuring stick and I was just tall enough. I was taller than my brother so I  was going to get to go but my brother was not, so I was so excited. Then, I stood by the fence and actually watched the roller coaster go through the loops. All of a sudden terror and fear gripped me. My six-year-old brain could not comprehend how I was going to go through this roller coaster upside down and actually not fall out.

My dad got in the line and I could not make up my mind whether I was going to go on the roller coaster or not. I stood in the line with my dad for a few minutes, I ran back to my mum thinking,  “No I am not going to do it, I am too scared!”  Then I ran back to my dad and stood in the line, then I ran back to mum. Finally, I said “I am going to do it, I am going to get past my fear and I am going to get on this roller coaster.”

Well our turn came. We got into the roller coaster car, the straps came down to hold us in and then it started with a big clunk and a shudder. It started to go up the first incline. You know how roller coasters are; they go slowly click, click, click, click, up the steep incline that’s going to give the momentum. All of a sudden the fear overwhelmed me as I started to see the ground fall away from our roller coaster. I could not do anything except cry that I wanted to get off this roller coaster. My dad tried his best to distract me. He told me that my uncle lived over the hill and to look at the view and all these other things to distract me but I was still so gripped with the fear of what was coming up.  

You see, when you are going up the incline of a roller coaster you do not actually know what is on the other side until you have actually been there. So the sheer terror that grips you that first time as you click up the hill to get to that crest and go down the other side is probably what makes it so exciting and what makes people want to get on it over and over again; but my six-year-old brain was just gripped with fear. All I could do was cry, close my eyes and scream “I want to get off” but of course I couldn’t get off. Then we got to the crest and I felt that adrenaline rush and my stomach came up into my mouth as we plummeted down the other side and then we whirled around at high speeds, we hit the first loop and we went upside down, then hit the second loop and went upside down, then all of a sudden my terror and my fear turned to sheer exhilaration, I was having the time of my life. Within a few seconds the whole roller coaster ride was over and we pulled into the stop and the first thing I said to my dad was “Can we go again? That was amazing!”

There is a funny thing about doing something new. If you want to develop in your life and if you want to get ahead and go beyond where you are currently, you are going to have to deal with the fear of the unknown at every step of your personal growth. You are going to have to overcome the fear barrier. When you can overcome the fear barrier the first time, what happens is, you actually stretch your comfort zone. The next time around, you are actually going to feel more confident and more excited about going into the unknown with every step of your personal development. You are going to have to overcome fear but when you step out you are going to get the results for it and you are going to be able to say that you did things that other people were too scared to try.

If you want to do more, go further in your life and be more than you are today, you need to learn to embrace the fear that comes with stepping out into the unknown because after you take that first step it’s going to be sheer exhilaration. You are going to be experiencing things well beyond your potential and well beyond your comfort zone. You will be able to  lead well no matter where you find yourself in life. Overcome the fear barrier and step out! You can do it!

If you would like to dig deeper into this and other topics on leadership, why don’t you check out my course “Leading for Success.” I take a deep dive into The Seven Essential Keys For Leading Well. 

You can access the link below. This is going to be really helpful to any leaders who are looking to level up and learn the fundamentals of leadership.

If you would like to learn more about effectively growing in your leadership, why not check out our FREE Goal Setting Guide. See below for details.

https://leadcommunicategrow.com/free-goal-setting-guide/

5 Steps to Set Goals that Work