“What would you recommend for people to do first if they want to accomplish a goal that scares them?”
That was a question posed to me recently during a Q & A time following a speaking engagement.
Her name was Mary and I asked her if she would be willing to explore her question a bit further with me and with those in attendance. She was happy to participate.
I asked Mary if she had a goal in mind for herself that scared her even just a bit. She did. She shared that she wanted to get more clients for her business. As for many people in sales, cold calling is scary for Mary. I asked her what her first step might be to getting more clients. She responded by saying that she needed to identify those potential clients. What would a second step be I asked. Mary responded, “Call them.”
Simple. I believe that with most of the fears we want to courageously face we already know how to get started. We already know what our first step should be. It’s a matter of simply taking that first step. Simple doesn’t mean easy. Courage is not easy. Fear calls us to do nothing, to stay where we are. Courage requires action.
Recently, I also had a conversation with a gentleman who was overwhelmed by what he needed to do to accomplish his goal. It just simply seemed too big. Often times we focus too much on the entire task rather than simply taking the first step.
In Steven Covey’s The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Habit 2 is, Begin With the End in Mind. It’s important to know where we want to go but it’s just as important to simply take the first step. We can’t get to step 2 without taking step 1.
Many of you will remember the punch line to the old joke/proverb, how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.
I’m sure you’ve also heard the old Chinese proverb by Lao Tzu, “The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”
Gary Keller, the co-founder of Keller Williams Real Estate, wrote a New York Times Best Seller, titled The One Thing. The premise of the entire book is based on the phrase, “What’s the ONE THING you can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary.”
I believe a very similar principle applies to courageously facing your fears. What’s the ONE THING you can do today to face whatever fear you have that is holding you back? Don’t worry about eating the whole elephant. Simply take one bite out of your fear today. Don’t worry about walking a thousand miles today. Simply take one courageous step.
What is the ONE courageous step you need to take TODAY?
Looking for a speaker for an upcoming event? I’d love to be that guy. You can reach me at dave@cultivatecourage.com or 952-200-7499.
You can now buy the book “Cultivate Courage” on Amazon! https://amzn.to/2N2PBVJ
