How To Do The Scary Thing In 10 Simple Steps

Earlier this week I posted a short piece about doing the scary thing. I encouraged you to do it, love it, and then go in search of more scary things to tame as you shred the path of your legacy.

This came about from a conversation I had last weekend while assisting the final course in the CTI Co-Active core curriculum, Synergy. Certification Pod Leader, Kat Knecht and I stood in conversation about what makes people successful. I asked her how she got to where she was in her career and she said, very simply, “I did the scary thing. Over and over and over again.”

So of course, I stole the wisdom of her words to share it with you. And I imagine it’s not the first time you’ve heard something like it. I mean, it wasn’t exactly news to me, either. I know I’m not growing when I’m comfortable, and being uncomfortable in life is scary.

Well, if we know this, then why don’t we just do the damn Scary Thing and be successful and happy and living our legacy? Because it’s scary, dammit! And being comfortable is easy. It’s easy to play small when the world out there is big and badass and scary. But that’s the thing. At some point, it stops being easy and starts being painful.

We live in a place of comfort until it gets so painfully comfortable we can’t hardly stand it. It’s like sleeping all night on your comfortable couch until you’ve sunk so deep you can barely get up. And when you do get up, you’ve slept in the same position all night, so your neck can barely look straight ahead, it’s so cricked.

This comfortable space you’re in isn’t serving you. It’s great to steady yourself after a long day, but like your couch, it’s not meant to be the space you live your life from.

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How To Do The Scary Thing:

1. Name the Scary Thing. Write it down on a piece of paper. With a big, fat Sharpie. In red. Give it horns and a mustache. (Yes, it will help if you try to have fun with it.)
2. Name three things that are scary about the Scary Thing. (Paper + Sharpie + Horns + Mustache)³.
3. Name three reasons you want to do the Scary Thing. (Paper + Sharpie + Wings + Love)³.
4. Name three things you can do TODAY to move you closer to doing the Scary Thing. (Paper + Sharpie + Wings + Love)³.
5. Review #3, then do the first thing in #4. TODAY. Don’t worry about doing it perfectly, just do it.
6. Review #3, then do the second thing in #4. TODAY. Don’t worry about doing it perfectly, just do it.
7. Review #3, then do the third thing in #4. TODAY. Don’t worry about doing it perfectly, just do it.
8. Celebrate yourself for moving three steps closer to doing the Scary Thing. (No, seriously … go jump up and down in the middle of the room and clap, this step is huge. Really)
9. Lather, rinse, repeat … steps 4-8 until you’ve done the Scary Thing.
10. Lather, rinse, repeat … everything.

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The steps are simple, the action is not. If it is, then you’re not doing the Scary Thing. The Scary Thing makes you squirm and try to slither away from it. The Scary Thing is begging you—the real you—to come outside and play, to take charge, to love it and hug it and call it George.

I mean, really.

What’s your Scary Thing?