103: Be Fearless and Age Fiercely

I think I was braver in my younger years than I am now.

That's not surprising because there's a carefree vibe in one's youth.

Youthful courage didn't come without a cost as we each have the memories and scars to prove it.

As you age, it's of no equal surprise that you become more measured and calculated (some might call that overthinking).

But as I'm aging there's a nagging desire within me that wants to recover some of that youthful bravery.

No, I'm not entering an adrenaline junkie phase although I do want to experience the renewed rush of doing things that push my limits on occasion.

The wisdom gained with age creates a safety net of sorts providing discernment and the ability to evaluate your next leap of faith.

I believe a renewed sense of fearlessness in your aging journey matters because without it your resistance to change and growth will increase.

Settling stifles the adventuresome potential within you, regardless of your age.

Choose to age more fiercely and discover a renewed spirit of fearlessness rising up within you

By fierce, I'm referring to a less passive and more active lifestyle.

If the word "sass" works better for you...so be it.

But whatever your chosen attitude make sure it compels you to do what's necessary to become a more fearless ager.

• Adjust your belief system
• Stay present when facing the unknown
• Take risks through improvisation

Adjust your belief system

Unfavorable or challenging circumstances create a response.

For some it's fight or flight - the tendency to fiercely stand your ground or to high-tail it outta there.

Others bitch, moan, and whine about how bad things are.

Or, you might resort to another form of negativity that I call, "why-ning."

Basically, "why-ning" is when you find yourself sucked into a vortex of asking: "why me?" "why this?," "why now?"

Being fearless diminishes when you why-yourself into a corner of victimhood.

Aging gives you plenty of reasons to play the victim: health, retirement savings, the economy, a shrinking social circle, feeling forgotten or marginalized, etc.

Some adjustments to your belief system will help.

• Replace your "whys" with "what": what's to be learned, discovered, or better understood as a result of your current challenge, circumstance, or setback?
• Let stuff go: though you have wisdom and experience you don't have to always chime-in. Another's experience could be their best education (this is tough as a grandparent dealing with adult children who are now parents).
• Believe the best: stop catastrophizing, avoid making mountains-out-of-molehills (showing my age there), or being a downer.

Stay present when facing the unknown

Looking to the future has its advantages such as advanced planning and anticipating productive alternatives.

Without an eye on the future you risk being caught off-guard.

But looking to the future too obsessively causes confusion, internal conflict, and an unnecessary rise in concern.

You can have an eye on the horizon of your future while also doing something that will enable you to be more fearless.

Stay present!

Staying present keeps you anticipating what's next without becoming fixated on the unknown.

There's a price to be paid for too much future focus such as increased anxiety and fretting over invented, negative outcomes.

Stay present and in so doing you'll simply have to pay attention.

When you pay attention the ROI (Return on Investment) is much greater and you'll experience increased courage.

• Less rabbit-holes involving bad ideas, misguided loyalty, or cultish behavior.
• Less what-ifing that forces negative anticipation, polarized decisions, or victimized complacency.

Take risks through improvisation

I could step out here and just say, "take risks," as if potentially reckless boldness or courage is all that's required for fearless aging.

But I've talked too much here about the value of being resourcefully resilient to take such a flippant, unthinking approach to risk-taking.

I prefer to encourage you to up your risk-taking through improvisation.

Sort of like good jazz.

I'm a fan of the jazz music genre and it's improvisational vibe.

You typically don't know where the music is going...and often neither do the musicians playing it - that's the risky nature of jazz.

I see risk-taking - in the context of becoming more fearless - as an exercise in jazz-like improvisation.

You assess the moment, circumstance, or challenge you're in and you improvise the next step.

Steve Farber, in his book The Radical Leap - A Personal Lesson in Extreme Leadership, introduced me to a risk-taking approach that's helped me ever since I first discovered it.

He calls it an "OSM" (Oh Sh^t Moment)1.

If that language is too edgy or offensive for your tastes try OCM (Oh "Crap" Moment).

Either way I think you get the point.

An OSM/OCM is when you make a momentary decision or take action and your first thought after doing so is "Oh..."

Those moments, while scary are (according to Farber) the keys to some of the best, most innovative, and potentially fulfilling decisions you can make.

New discoveries, relationships, results, or virtually anything that produces a fulfilling outcome happen primarily as the result of a risk taken by a fearless and fiercely motivated individual.

It's being the person who follows the first step with an "Oh...!"

If that's you, and I hope it is, embrace every risk that aging compels you to take.

An OSM/OCM is much more fulfilling than a WDI (Why Didn't I?)

Fiercely fearless moments await you as you age but why wait? Take a leap!

• Adjust your belief system
• Stay present when facing the unknown
• Take risks through improvisation

Press on...

Eddie

Sources:

1 - Steve Farber, The Radical Leap - A Personal Lesson in Extreme Leadership, pp.20-21.