Two Powerful Techniques to Increase Your Courage
I’ve come to understand that courage is one of the most powerful catalysts for real, lasting change in our lives available to us. Yet most of us will spend the better part of our lives wandering around in self-doubt land, fearful of taking that one little step that could make all the difference. Why?
First, we are wired to associate what is familiar with safety. We believe that what is comfortable is safe. As humans, the last thing we want to do is make a change - which leads to disruption of our comfort zone and causes fear. “I’d rather feel safe,” so I don’t step out of my comfort zone. It’s natural.
We All Have Hidden Programming to Overcome
And to add fuel to the fire, there is this hidden programming that runs in each of us that takes us directly back to a time when we were young, we took a risk, and it didn’t go as we had hoped. Maybe we spoke up in class to answer the question when the teacher asked. And, while we knew just what to say, our classmates laughed at us and called us a “know-it-all” or “show off,” so we began to feel unsafe having the answers. And we began to feel unsafe speaking up.
This is fear. It’s real. It is a programmed response that dates way back. For some of my clients, the response is older than even this lifetime. Until we can dig out the programming and change it, to upgrade the system to the latest programming, the fear pattern repeats.
(Bet you didn’t know that, did you?)
So the trick to taking big, life-changing steps of change, to stepping into our powerful selves with bold action for big results, requires us to tenderly and consciously work our courage muscle. It requires that we create safety in doing what once caused us pain/shame/fear and can now open to different, positive outcomes.
Learning Techniques for Safety
What can you do on your own to build the courage muscle? First, you can learn techniques that help you create safety in your body. You can learn breathing and visualization techniques that calm you and allow you to override the fear response. I teach these often. Many are available in my latest YouTube training found HERE.
Work With Positive Memories
Next, you can work with positive memories. Recall a time in your life when you faced uncertain odds, and you were able to step up and confidently take action - action that led to positive results. Take time to close your eyes and think of this occasion vividly. Call up the memory as if it is here, now, real, in this moment. Feel it in your body as if you were transported back in time. What do you see? What do you smell? What do you hear? What do you feel? This visualization of reality literally tricks our brains. Science shows how probes applied to marathon runners, doing this same exercise, can’t tell if the experience the runner is imagining is real or imagined. The body responds the same.
This helps us resurrect our courage for today’s needs.
If you’re anything like most of my clients, you have big things to do in this lifetime. Your heart is calling you to be a more conscious, impactful leader, parent, and change-maker. In order to achieve the brilliant things you are here to achieve, it’s going to take more courage. I hope you’ll get the support you need to rewire your programming and confidently step up. I’m here to help.
Let’s schedule a session together! If it’s your first time working with me, grab a complimentary discovery session. In an hour, you’ll experience incredible change that will put you on the right path to living a life full of courage.
If we’ve worked together before and you need a quick refresh, grab a 1-hour private session as a “tune-up” on your skills.