{"id":34478,"date":"2015-08-04T10:24:04","date_gmt":"2015-08-04T18:24:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/?p=34478"},"modified":"2015-08-05T21:48:17","modified_gmt":"2015-08-06T05:48:17","slug":"7-steps-build-bravery-success-riding","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pickthebrain.com\/blog\/7-steps-build-bravery-success-riding\/","title":{"rendered":"7 Steps To Build The Bravery Your Success Is Riding On"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Fear is an emotion that often gets a bad rap.\u00a0 The truth is that without it, saber tooth tigers would have eaten our cave dwelling ancestors long ago.\u00a0 While we no longer face daily threats to our physical survival, the culture we live in thrives on fear mongering and often makes us feel and act as though we do.\u00a0 And so the challenge we face in our today\u2019s modern world is to discern between the fears that are serving us and those that are holding us back.<\/p>\n

That takes courage.<\/p>\n

Of course being courageous isn\u2019t about pretending that bad things don\u2019t happen or that real risks are all in our head. It is about choosing to lay our vulnerability on the line for something greater than our pride; risking failure and rejection in order to pursue our greatest aspirations and create more truthful and meaningful lives.<\/p>\n

It begins by getting clear about what it is that you most want \u2013 in your work or business, relationships and life \u2013 and then identifying fear may be inadvertently be holding you back from having it.\u00a0\u00a0 Here\u2019s 7 steps to get you started.<\/p>\n

1. GET CLEAR ABOUT WHAT YOU REALLY WANT<\/strong><\/p>\n

Michelangelo once said, \u201cThe greater danger is not that our dreams are too lofty and we fail to achieve the but they are too small and we do.\u201d\u00a0 However most of us are too afraid to dream big because as soon as we do it creates a large crevasse between where we presently are and where we\u2019d like to be.<\/p>\n

So beginning where you are, identify an area(s) of your life in which you feel a clear level of dissatisfaction or unhappiness. What would you need to do to be different for you to feel a deep sense of purpose and satisfaction. Don\u2019t get stuck on the external stuff like \u201cI want a top job, big house, or gorgeous girl\/guy by my side.\u201d\u00a0 Rather focus on the feeling that you think these things would give you, i.e., \u201cI want a job that is both challenging & rewarding. I want a relationship with a self-assured and love person who I love hanging out with.\u201d\u00a0 Get the drill?<\/p>\n

Unless you get clear about what you really want \u2013 in your career, relationships, health & wellbeing, and life \u2013 you\u2019ll have little chance of actually getting it. Dare to dream big.<\/p>\n

2. IDENTIFY YOUR DEEPEST FEAR<\/strong><\/p>\n

Fear is not a \u2018bad\u2019 thing. Far from it! Rather it\u2019s a question of whether or not your fears are actually serving you (protecting you from REAL threats to your wellbeing) or if they are holding you back keeping you stuck, tip toeing through life and living, as Thoreau called, a \u201cquiet life of desperation.\u201d So what is it that you are afraid might happen if you begin taking action in the direction of your goals and dreams? That you will be humiliated, that you\u2019ll go broke, be rejected or \u2018found out\u2019 as inadequate? Whatever your fear, own it. Unless you own your fears, they will own you. The only way to conquer our fear is to look it right in the eye and then step forward in its presence.<\/p>\n

3. BE HONEST ABOUT THE COST OF INACTION.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t kid yourself, inaction and choosing to do nothing, is costly.\u00a0 Research has identified a psychological phenomenon whereby we human beings tend toward discounting the cost of our choices, even when it\u2019s obvious they are not benefiting us. The reason why? Reality ain\u2019t pretty. The result? We kid ourselves; everything\u2019s hunky dory when really, it\u2019s anything but, and all the while life sails along in a direction that\u2019s taking us far from the life we\u2019d truly love to live. The very act of acknowledging that we are stuck or unhappy is an act of courage all its own, but getting present to the steep price you are paying for letting fear and doubt run your life (or even part of it!) is absolutely crucial to re-creating it the way you want it to be. Only once you have done so can you find the guts to put your fears in their rightful place and be able to rise above them and into action toward whatever tugs at your heart.<\/p>\n

4.BREAK YOUR BIG VISION INTO SMALL STEPS<\/strong><\/p>\n

Martin Luther King Jr. once said, \u201cYou don\u2019t have to see the whole staircase, just the first step.\u201d And so when it comes to doing something that leaves a wide cavernous gap between where you are now and where you ultimately want to be, don\u2019t think that you need to know how to bridge it before you take the first step forward.<\/p>\n

What matters most is knowing the direction you want to head, even if you aren\u2019t clear on a specific end-point destination (I sure wasn\u2019t at eighteen!) \u00a0Once you know the direction, then think about what you would like to be doing 12 months from now that would be moving you toward it. Then think about what you\u2019d be doing 6 months from now. Then 2 months from now. Then 2 weeks from now. Then tomorrow.\u00a0 Then today.<\/p>\n

5. CREATE ACCOUNTABILITY<\/strong><\/p>\n

Enlist a support team, hire a coach, recruit an accountability partner or join a group of like-minded people. Just make sure you have people around you who are committed to yourself and willing to get on your case if you start to veer off the rails and slip back into your old excuse-laden procrastinating M.O.<\/p>\n

6. WALK WITH GIANTS<\/strong><\/p>\n

The people you surround yourself with have a huge impact on how you see yourself, your challenges and the world.\u00a0 If you want to live a bigger life, you need to surround yourself with people who \u2018think big\u2019 and who will encourage you to do the same.\u00a0 Accordingly, you also want to avoid any people in your life who may discourage your actions and step on your dreams.\u00a0 While they are really just afraid that you will leave them behind, in the early days as you start out,\u00a0you should steer clear of people who will only fuel anxiety and feed self-doubt.\u00a0 Just never let anyone diminish you or your dreams.<\/p>\n

7. TRAIN THE BRAVE DAILY<\/strong><\/p>\n

Courage is like a muscle. The more you act with it, the stronger it becomes. Likewise every time you take action in the presence of your fears you dilute its power and amplify your own. \u00a0But let\u2019s face it, creating change in your life is a little like getting a 747 off the ground\u2026 it takes a lot of energy up front to build forward momentum and get you airborne. Expecting it\u2019s gong to be easy from the get go can set you up for disappointment. Instead of expecting to see immediate results, focus instead on the fact that you are simply in action and every day, do one thing that takes you out of your comfort zone and moving in the direction that inspires you.<\/p>\n

Achieving anything worthwhile takes both courage and sheer hard work.\u00a0 But as you start taking action, you will discover that not only are you capable of more than you thought you were, but you will discover whole new realms of possibility open for you.\u00a0\u00a0 It begins with a single act of courage. Followed by another. Then another.\u00a0 Every significant endeavor that has ever happened throughout history has been the accumulation of thousands of smaller braver steps.<\/p>\n

MARGIE WARRELL<\/strong> provides leadership, communication, and courage-building programs for organizations including NASA, UN Foundation, AOL and Accenture and her advice is featured throughout leading global media. She is the author of BRAVE: 50 Everyday Acts of Courage to Thrive in Work, Love, and Life.\u00a0 www.margiewarrell.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Fear is an emotion that often gets a bad rap. The truth is that without it, saber tooth tigers would have eaten our cave dwelling ancestors long ago. Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10778,"featured_media":34639,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[205,45,6,31],"tags":[2069,591,1722,644,66,4629,4640],"yoast_head":"\n7 Steps To Build The Bravery Your Success Is Riding On<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Fear is an emotion that often gets a bad rap. 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