Fears (or "Gremlins") and The Big Leap

The first time I came across the term "Gremlins" (not the film, mind you) was when I was training to be a coach back in 2004.  A "Gremlin" is the term used for those inner-voices or limiting beliefs that chatter away, most often arising out of fear.

One of Brian Johnson's Philosphers Notes that arrived in my inbox this morning talked about a great way to deal with them...

“Unless you’re very lucky or very enlightened, you’re likely to hear those nattering voices and feel those nagging fears within you. They’re part of the deal. I won’t try to talk you out of them, and you shouldn’t try to talk yourself out of them, either. Just notice the voices and feel the fears. That’s all you need to do with them. You don’t need to rid yourself of them. Where would they go, anyway? All you need to do is acknowledge them, wave to them, let them know you’re aware of them. Then get busy learning to live in your Zone of Genius.” ~ Gay Hendricks from The Big Leap.  (Tip: listen to the free MP3 snippet when you click on the link - it's a great introduction to the work of Henddricks!)

That’s awesome. I don’t know about you, but I still hear those little voices of fear in my head and those little fear gremlins running through my system on occasion. I love Gay’s visual of simply acknowledging them and WAVING at them. :)

Imagine that! The next time your little fearsicles come out, rather than frantically try to get rid of ‘em or ignore them or pretend they aren’t there, why not acknowledge them and WAVE at them.

* WAVES! *

Maybe even throw in a wink and a smile and a little happy dance in their direction. Then get busy doing what needs to be done as you rock it in your Zone of Genius.

Reminds me of a couple of my favorite thoughts on fear. First, the artist Georgia O’Keefe who said: “I’ve been afraid every single day of my life, but I’ve gone ahead and done it anyway.” Even Tiger Woods says that the day he’s not nervous stepping up to the first tee is the day he quits.

The fact is that as we play at our edges, OF COURSE we’re gonna have fear. That’s not a big deal. It’s how we *respond* to the fear that’ll determine the quality of our lives. Let’s explore some more great Ideas on how to deal with fear. (Gay’s got a lot of ‘em!!)

Thanks (yet again) Brian!

Comments

[Brian Johnson]

big smile, kate!

to waving at the gremlins while we get on with rockin' it. :)

-bri