"I have not ceased being fearful, but I have ceased to let fear control me."
When was the last time you did something in which you had to be brave and bold so you could create a better life for yourself? Maybe it was career or family related. Maybe it was something personal that you needed to prove to yourself. Bold moves require inspired action, and most of the time, it requires facing our fears and doing it anyway. Some people call it taking a leap of faith.
I have made some pretty bold moves in my life. Some of them worked out great, and some of them, not so much. One of the most daring moves I made was volunteering to become an adult staff member for a weekend personal development and leadership retreat called Operation Snowball. I was more of a recluse at the time. A co-worker of mine talked me into it, and it shaped my life forever, for the better. I had my reservations about the weekend, but this is right after I reconnected with my heart, and I felt compelled to attend.
Photo by Aziz Acharki on Unsplash
I was scared at first, since I did not know any of the 200+ people in attendance except my co-worker, who I barely saw the entire weekend. It's hard to explain the weekend, but easy to recall. I connected with teens and adults who shared their personal stories of struggle and adversity with complete strangers. I remember feeling empowered to share my story. It was one of the best weekends I ever had. I ended up volunteering for Snowball for five more years. I even currently work part-time for the organization who hosts the semi-annual event.
I ended up obtaining a Masters degree in Community Counseling because of that brisk fall weekend back in 2009. I created an entirely new career path for myself all because I took my colleague up on an offer to go on some weekend retreat for a bunch of teenagers. You might not be reading Subatomic Zen right now if it weren't for that weekend. My bold move changed my life for the better and I am glad I had the guts to do it, despite my initial fears. We cannot predict where our bold moves will take us, but we won't find out unless we choose to actually be bold and just go for it!