I had the opportunity to attend a Women Leadership day and oh my, I am so glad I was there. In the last few months it seems like the theme around me is screaming Growth, Growth, Growth. It feels like my capacity is expanding and my depth is digging deeper but interestingly at the same time, I feel so stretched to the point I fear I might snap. Is it fear that overwhelms me or does stretching beyond your capacity come with these feeling of ‘please hold me, I might break?
Well, at this Leadership day, we had a number of great speakers, great line of women leaders. Amongst then, Jessica Cox stood out for me. Oh…..my…. goodness! She was the highlight of the day for me.
In case you don’t know who Jessica Cox is; she is the World 1st licensed armless pilot. She holds the Guinness World Record for The only Pilot to fly with their Feet. Yep, you read that right. I’m still trying to sit still during a turbulence, then you have Jessica flying an aircraft with her feet. Talk about doing the impossible. After I heard her speak, I gradually began to get clarity on what being stretched means. You see, at the time of the event, I was in the middle of a situation that was stretching me. I had many questions because I wasn’t sure what was happening. But Jessica’s words nourished me and reminded me that Growth comes with facing and overcoming challenges. The greater the challenge, the greater the feeling you get when you face and overcome it , she said (I paraphrased).
Challenges are usually accompanied with Fear. I think when we understand that the culprit isn’t the Challenge in itself, we will welcome challenges more often. The real culprit is Fear. Fear of Failing. Sometimes we are afraid to try because we think we might fail. Or the fear of Rejection. No one wants a bruised ego or a depleted self-esteem. This talk about Fear reminds me of the another Leadership conference I attended where I got educated by Ryan Leak on Fear. Apparently, we are born with just 2 Fears; Fear of loud noises and Fear of falling. So it makes one wonder, why do we have other kinds of Fear? Where do they come from? hmmm…Interesting.
Let’s get back to Jessica. At the Leadership day, she demonstrated how she learnt to open a can of soda with her feet. She then demonstrated how she learnt to buckle herself into the seat into the pilot seat of an aircraft with her feet. But before then, she first demonstrated how she learnt to tie her shoe laces with her feet when she was in Elementary school. She recalled how she thought of the many ways she could tie her shoe laces with her feet and she remembered the saying – Think outside the Box. But to her, the Box wasn’t the problem. It was the Shoe.
S – Self-limiting words we tell ourselves.
H – Habits holding us back.
O – Overcomplicating situations in our lives
E – Excuses that deter us from trying.
Think of all the things you’ve wanted to accomplish but you didn’t because of the Shoe. Think of the self-limiting words you’ve told yourself. The habits you’ve formed overtime that have held you back. The overthinking you’ve done when you could have been like Nike and Just do it. Think of the excuses you have come up with to sabotage yourself. How about this – when next you face a challenge, think outside the Shoe. Think of Jessica Cox who beat the odds to successfully become a 1st in many life accomplishments. If she can, then what’s holding you back?
