Free Falling
#GROUNDED
Fear manifests itself in many ways, but the end result is always the same. You will miss out on some of the greatest opportunities of your life. It isn't always easy to spot fear as it hides behind other fairly legitimate concerns. You have a back up plan because it's a sensible thing to do. You can't live without money so it makes sense to be prepared in case you don't achieve your goals. You don't send your new headshots or showreel out because now is just not the right time. You don't write that script or make that film because that's not what you do. You even stay in the same job that you hate and gives you no creative freedom because bills need to be paid. All these are examples of fear hiding in disguise. A disguise which has been given the power by you to control your life, keep you safe, and keep you grounded. This is our comfort zone and it's a creative killer. Everything that you have put off has actually been something you have been afraid of, regardless of the excuse you have given yourself.
#LEAP OF FAITH
The hardest part about fear is the unknown. Your brain will come up with a hundred reasons why you should not take a risk. Convincing you to stay in your safe space. As an extreme example of fear, take a look at sky diving. The majority of the earth's population would think anyone wanting to jump out of a perfectly good aircraft has to be crazy. A large portion would also love to try it but their brain convinces them that the risk of plummeting towards the earth and potentially to their death is not worth it. Lastly, you have the ones that overcome the fear. If you have skydived or spoken to anyone who has, you can be fairly confident that they didn't die from the whole ordeal. You might even see their face light up with a joy that only anyone who has fallen from the sky would be able to understand. Now taking a chance with your career does not come with the life-threatening risk that skydiving does. So why are you putting it off? The excuses the brain comes up with are fears that are just holding back your potential. If you were given a chance to have all of your dreams come true, would you take it? Why do we convince ourselves otherwise? It's time to look at our fears and face them. Trust yourself. You wont regret taking a chance. When you look back in years to come, the things you regret most are likely to be all of those opportunities you missed because you were too afraid.
#FLYING
If you can take that leap, you can overcome the mental blocks the mind has created to keep you safe. You will soon find out that the unknown, which has held you back for so long, has been keeping you from some of the most enjoyable experiences of your life. This space can also be the place you grow the most as a human, while taking big steps towards success in your chosen field. The fear of jumping out of that proverbial plane vanishes in an instant. You are not plummeting to your death. You are flying. It is pure happiness. Your world has opened up and anything is possible. Those fears that once held you back can be excitement. Opportunities beyond the unknown are now real. It is a place where you will feel amazing, you will learn more than you ever thought you could and most importantly, it is where you will find the success you have been dreaming about for so long. Once you take that chance for the first time, it then becomes easier to take a risk the next time. You might also take a chance on something bigger, who knows? One thing is certain; you will be comfortable outside of your comfort zone. And this is where you will flourish creatively. Does that sound so scary in the end?
The quicker you understand that all of those excuses are driven by fear, the quicker you can overcome them. Now is your time. Reach out and take control of your dreams.