My name is Ron White, and I am a two-time USA Memory Champion. I would like to share with you some lessons on overcoming your fear to build confidence, I learned while working with my friend and former U.S. Navy SEAL, T.C. Cummings.
Do you know what makes you fearful? If you don’t understand what makes you afraid you can’t get a grip on it and learn to overcome this fear. Do your hands sweat and your knees buckle every time you have to speak in front of an audience? This would make life extremely difficult for a salesman or motivational speaker. If you find yourself drawing a blank whenever a test is placed in front of you it certainly makes it harder to pass a class or get a job.
Confronting your fears means you have to look that fear straight in the eye and forge ahead. If you continue to be afraid, you will be haunted by your lack of self-confidence, and could lose out on a lot of opportunities. On the other hand, facing your fears and going ahead anyway will make you more confident, and less afraid, each time to continue on.
T.C. told a group of people in one or our “Mind of a U.S. Navy SEAL†workshops about a friend of his, who was also a Navy SEAL. This man was terrified of jumping out of airplanes. Since refusing to jump from an airplane was never an option to remain in the SEALs (and there is a lot of jumping out of water into deep water, or into dangerous terrain) T.C.’s friend had to overcome his fears and jump anyway. He knew he was afraid, yet he knew that if he didn’t jump he would not be able to stay in the SEALs program. As T.C. likes to say, “Whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.†
T.C.’s friends confronted his fears, and found the more often he jumped from a plane the easier it got. That doesn’t mean he ever totally overcame this fear, but by facing it and meeting it head on he was able to manage the fear and become comfortable with it. His desire to remain a SEAL was stronger than his fear of jumping.
What are you afraid of? What fear do you need to face in order to build your confidence? With practice comes achievement. The more you practice the easier it gets and the more confident you get that you have conquered your fear. What are the consequences if you don’t confront and manage your fear?
If you are a salesman, afraid to make a presentation or cringe every time you are told to make cold calls, how far do you think you will get in sales? Â The key element to self-confidence is an acceptance of the consequences of a particular situation, whether they are good or bad. Does your desire to succeed in sales outweigh your fear of making that first cold call?
You will find the first time you confront your fear is always the hardest, and each time thereafter becomes easier. You are building up confidence in yourself and your ability to handle what you are afraid of. Whatever makes you cringe may never be something you look forward to doing, but it is an essential part of your job or life, so it is important that you release your anxiety and look forward to the time after the job is done.
You will find the lesson in facing your fears to build confidence among many available on the training CDs “Mind of a Navy SEAL,†and in our training “Think Like A U.S. Navy SEAL†workshops.
Sources:
“Mind of a U.S. Navy SEAL†workshop
Wikkipedia – Confidence: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confidence
Building Self-Confidence – Preparing Yourself For Success! http://www.mindtools.com/selfconf.html