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Stepping outside one’s comfort zone is such an individual sport: what seems like a long-jump to one is an easy dance to the next person. In fact, sometimes something that seems fine and easy “in the moment”, can get all slippery and uncertain the next day. Because fear can become such a dominating factor in life, I decided to share one of my recent experiences with you; something I decided to do that launched me out there into that cold, scary realm of fear, grasping for the glimmers of trust that had propelled me in the first place. It might not sound like a much to you at all – you might even laugh when you read this…but to me, it has been a big deal! It all comes down to a question of fear vs. trust. Here’s what happened:
Last week, I was checking my email when I opened one from the talented young entrepreneur, Jonathan Budd. In his letter, he talked about the over-the-top, weekend intensive that he and Mark Hoverson were dreaming up as a sort of grand finale to the fantastic Pay-Per-Click Mastery series that they have been presenting over the past 7 weeks. (Watch for my Top Tips coming soon).
You Don’t Want To Miss This!
Attendance was to be decided upon based on an application (an in-depth questionnaire). I opened it, glanced over it and got on with my day. By late afternoon I was in a rush to leave for a long drive to a meeting. Suddenly, filling out that application felt like an urgent priority. My mind was calm and focused as I raced through each question …wondering to myself why it seemed like such a big deal to finish it before I left for the evening.
The Little Voice In My Head Kept Whispering…
“Just do it! Finish this now!” Putting it off till the next day would have given me too much time to talk myself out of it. I know this because I’ve done it so many times before in my life … too much time for the fear to kick in. I’ve had great instincts about lots of things in my life, signed up, paid my money … and then chickened out… and later on down the road, have ALWAYS wondered how things might be if I’d followed through with my original plan.
When did I get so scared of my dreams?
That’s a long story for another day. But along the way, there have been other times, times when I’ve made my decisions – big and small – with courage and certainty; with an internal knowing that, if I didn’t do whatever it was, I would always wonder about what would have happened if I had gone through with the plan. So now, the clock was ticking madly in my ears as I carefully raced through the last few questions. There wasn’t enough time to indulge my tendency to over-think it. I just stayed open and honest about my past, my technical challenges (I’m an artist, not a techie) and my goals. They might not select me but at least they would know who I was.
I clicked the submit button and raced out the door, jumped in my car and headed south.
Timing Is Everything
Ten or fifteen minutes down the road, my phone started ringing.
“Hi, this is Aaron Fortner. Mark and Jonathan just read your application and they want you to be part of their weekend intensive.” My head spun a little. “What? Are you sure? ” I had a feeling that something was about to change my life. But I also knew that I was going to have to leap off an edge to get there: was I ready to jump to the next level after all the months and hours struggling at the computer? Oh yeah!
Next morning, I got more details from Aaron: not only would Mark Hoverson and Jonathan Budd be spending quality, one-on-one time with us, but he (Aaron Fortner) and Katie Freiling would both also be there doing the same. He outlined the weekend of money-generating work and relaxing FUN. It sounded awesome.
Who doesn’t enjoy mixing work and fun with great company? Would you go if the chance arose?
… but WAIT … what about the Monsters Under My Bed?
You’re probably asking yourself, “OK, but what about all that the fear you mentioned? What’s the worry?” Right! Exactly! And yet, there it was. Despite my enthusiasm and anticipation, by the very next day, my mind was already playing tricks on me. What was I thinking? What was I doing? How could I pull this off? Why was I doing this?
And then suddenly the picture snapped into a better focus. Oh, the fear is still smoldering in there, deep inside …fear of failure, fear that I’ll make a fool of myself, that I won’t learn enough to really make a difference in my bottom line, that this might be a waste of time and money, that I’m making a big mistake … those fears are churning around, mixing it up with the excitement, nervousness and mild panic; taking turns tightening my gut. But I know why I am going … and I’m psyched!
Jumping Out Of Airplanes
It’s actually really crazy to feel nervous about something like this. I mean, it’s only money…and it will be a great education, no matter what. Hey, I’ve climbed mountains, flown airplanes, jumped out of airplanes, been scuba-diving around the world, whitewater kayaked all over the West … all sorts of physical things that might scare someone else. Plus I’ve studied personal development in all sorts of settings for many years.
But putting myself on the line with people – and trying to be successful with business … both of those things terrify me and here it is – all in one package. So it does feel slightly nuts to find myself trusting people I have never even physically met to teach me things I need to know to be more successful in networking and online marketing – things about which I knew almost nothing only 6 months ago. Am I insane? Maybe, but it all comes down to TRUST – trusting myself, my instincts and these people who have already given so much and will soon be my friends. I will be traveling to San Diego to sit humbly at their feet soaking up everything I can get and giving back as much as I can in return.
I’m not getting any younger and there are so many things I want to accomplish with my life: Money does not buy Happiness or True Abundance, but it certainly helps facilitate all sorts of dreams and goals. For me, this is about once again having the time to devote myself to my art and to having the resources to travel, to create, to spend more time with my family, to give back to my community and to help make the world a better place in truly meaningful ways. It’s time to get the financial monkey off my back once and for all!
So How About You?
If you’ve ever wanted to do something, or known you would if you just had the money; if you’ve ever been gripped by fear of the unknown; if you’ve ever searched for courage to do something you knew might change your life…or if you know someone else who has been in such a situation and you think they might enjoy reading about my experience, I hope you’ll re-tweet this and share it in any of the numerous ways available. I’m looking forward to bringing back stories and pictures from this upcoming adventure. Plus I know there will be tons of fascinating, useful tips about how to bring true abundance and greater creativity into your life. Please join me to hear more as all the details unfold! And watch for “Top Tips” where I’ll be sharing tips and strategies from the PPC Mastery course as well as from other top leaders across a broad spectrum. If you haven’t already signed up to receive my free 7 Steps To A More Creative Life, I hope you’ll take this opportunity to do that now.
Blessings and Light,
Buff Elting
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[...] deeper way to everyone present, as the boundaries of my comfort zone instantly expanded. (Read Fear vs Trust, to discover how even showing up for this summit was a big step for me.) It just seems incredible [...]