Have you ever run a marathon?
I have not, but I’ve always wished that I could say that I have. Unfortunately, there are two things holding me back…a bad knee and a lack of motivation. The second one is a bigger restraint than the first.
Even though I may never run a marathon, that doesn’t mean I don’t know how. It is pretty simple actually. All you have to do is run.
I don’t mean to say that running a marathon is simple, it is not. It takes a great deal of training, discipline and nipple tape.
I just mean that the strategy of how to run a marathon is something we all can comprehend.
Can the same be said about overcoming fear?
Think about it.
I know I may give in to fear from time to time, but deep down I also know how to overcome it. It is pretty simple actually.
It takes training, discipline and nipple tape. Okay, maybe not that last one.
In his new book, What to do When it’s Your Turn (and its always your turn), Seth Godin compares running to failing.
“Consider our avoidance of feeling tired,” Godin writes.
If you’re unwilling to be tired, unwilling to feel fatigue in your legs, you can’t run a marathon. Successful marathon runners haven’t figured out how to avoid being tired, they’ve figured out where to put the tired when it arrives. If you’re not willing to be tired, you can’t run.”
He goes on to say, “If you’re not willing to imagine failure, you’re unable to be free.”
If we want to do great things, we won’t be able to avoid fear, in much the same way be won’t be able to avoid getting out of breath if we run 26 miles. But that is okay. No one is asking us to figure out a magic potion to avoid fear.
We just need to figure out where to put it when it arrives.
Photo credit: Wikipedia
