Podcast Episode 144 - Overcoming Fear pt 4 - Develop your courage
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Do you freeze when you think about your dreams or goals?
Do you feel like you're not courageous enough to make them happen?
Do you look at others making it happen and think, "How in the heck are they doing it?!" "What's wrong with me?!"
Today is for you if:
If you desire to fulfill your dreams but are still scared.
If you struggle or avoid doing what you need to do to achieve your dreams.
If you're ready to develop your courage so you can finally stop hiding, show up fully yourself and fulfill your God-given purpose… it's your day, my friend!!
We're all going to use our imagination. But we get to decide if it will work for us or against us.
Today we're focusing on the third step in directing your imagination–Develop Your Courage!
Courage is not the absence of fear… it's doing that thing you're afraid of anyway.
Developing courage is like working out.
As you work your muscles, you break them down, but then they get stronger and stronger.
The same goes for courage. As we do it afraid and step out courageously, we develop more courage.
How do we do that?
Here are three steps to developing your courage:
1. Ask your fear, "what are you trying to tell me?"
Fear is trying to keep us safe. That's its job. But it doesn't mean that’s what we need in that moment.
Maybe your fear is thinking:
You'll fail.
You need more information before you can move forward.
If you share, you'll cause conflict.
You won't be able to get it perfect the first time.
You're bringing the real root issue to the surface, and now you know what's really going on.
2. Create Proactive Actions
You know fear’s coming when you step out into the unknown; you'll see the patterns of fear in your life. But we must know what to do when fear comes, so it doesn't stop us.
It's like your batman utility belt you can pull out anytime fear comes knocking.
Here are a few proactive action ideas:
Breathe
Call a friend
Pray
Journal
Walk
Breathing is actually a huge one! When we're in fear, we tend to take short, shallow breaths, tighten up, and then our brain gets less oxygen and can't think clearly–and when we need it the most!
Try breathing for 4 seconds, hold for 2 seconds, breathe out for 8 seconds and hold for 2 seconds. Then repeat the pattern.
3. Generate Courage
Courage is like a power plant.
Power plants don't have energy; they generate energy.
It's already in us…but we need to generate it!
We must take the action steps–make the call, send the email, join the networking group, or start that business.
So what do you need to do? Do that–afraid!
As we take the steps, we generate more courage. And as we generate more courage, we gain confidence knowing we've done it in the past so that we can do it again.
If you know, you really struggle with fear, but you have a big thing in your heart to do…want to write, speak, coach, or create a business. But it's been decades, and you're nowhere closer. Or you started but got stuck in fear or are playing small.
The Courageous Club might just be the missing piece you need to overcome fear, get unstuck and finally move toward your dreams.