Our son and daughter just completed their orange belts in Taekwondo, and I’m so proud of them. They were awarded their belts just a few days ago, and their gifted instructor, Mr. Molley, gave a short talk on overcoming fear. He told how, when he was a teenager, he and his father were spending some time together with his brother when his father had a seizure. He didn’t know what to do – he was overwhelmed by fear and what was happening. He was frozen. Fortunately, his brother was there and was able to get help. Their father recovered.

Mr. Molley said that he never wanted to find himself frozen like that again, and that his practice and training in martial arts has helped him – he has learned that whatever happens, he can handle it. Faced with a crisis, he can rely on the practice and training to help him face the situation and engage, even if the crisis isn’t about fighting a person – even if the crisis is about fighting for a life. The confidence developed in one area bleeds over to another.

I found the same to be true as I learned how to ride a motorcycle. The confidence developed by learning to ride spilled over into other areas of my life, giving me the strength to make changes in my work – giving me the strength to quit a soul-sapping job in management – and giving me the strength to pursue my passion of helping others master their fears.

They say that courage is a muscle built with exercise, and it’s true. And as anyone who has done a physical exercise routine knows, exercise builds heat. And that means… if you’re frozen in fear, you can use heat developed in one area of your life to melt the ice and break free in another area. Mr. Molley did it, I did it, and so can you.

Posted in Getting Unstuck
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