Feb. 27, 2019

#19 Cultivating the Courage to Pursue Your Goals and Dreams

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If you’ve ever wondered how to build courage so you can finally pursue your goals and dreams, this episode is for you. We break down why fear keeps so many people stuck—and how you can overcome it through small daily acts of bravery. Whether it’s starting a business, having hard conversations, or raising resilient kids, learning how to build courage is the key to unlocking your dream life. Tune in to discover real-life strategies that will help you face fear, grow spiritually, and live life boldly.

Are you stuck in a cycle of dreaming about the life you want—but never actually taking action to create it?

Do you tell yourself, “I’ll do it someday…” but that day never comes because you’re waiting to feel ready or less afraid?

In this episode, we dive deep into why courage is the missing ingredient in most people’s lives—and how to cultivate the kind of courage that helps you pursue your goals and dreams, even when fear is screaming at you to stay small.

Most people think you need more time, money, or talent to achieve your dreams. But the truth is, you need more courage. And courage is something you can build—just like a muscle.

We share personal stories about facing fear—from battling social anxiety to taking a literal leap of faith by BASE jumping off a 500-foot bridge (yes, really!). You’ll learn how small, intentional acts of bravery lead to bigger successes in life, parenting, marriage, and personal growth.

Whether you’re parenting kids, building a business, strengthening your marriage, or improving your life, courage is the gateway to growth.

Key Takeaways:

✅ Fear is normal—but it shouldn’t run your life

✅ Courage is built through daily practice, not one-time heroics

✅ How to face small fears to build big confidence

✅ Why spiritual growth requires courage

✅ How to model courage for your kids so they grow up resilient and bold

✅ The surprising link between courage, confidence, and emotional resilience

Chapters:

00:00 Why Courage Is the Missing Piece in Your Life

03:21 Fear vs. Growth: Why You Feel Stuck

06:45 How to Build Courage—Step by Step

12:34 The Power of Doing Scary Things

18:52 How Fear Holds Parents Back

24:10 Raising Courageous Kids: Modeling Bravery

30:07 The Bridge Story: BASE Jumping and Facing Fear

39:55 Courage Creates Confidence in Every Area of Life

45:14 Why "Waiting Until You’re Ready" Doesn’t Work

48:03 Becoming a Powerhouse of Courage

51:32 Final Thoughts: Awesome Is Always an Option

Memorable Quotes:

🗣 "Courage is doing the thing even though you’re scared—not waiting until the fear is gone."

🗣 "We don’t grow by staying comfortable. We grow by doing hard things on purpose."

🗣 "If you want your kids to be bold and brave, show them how to face fear by doing it yourself."

🗣 "Fear is a liar. Courage tells the truth about who you’re capable of becoming."

RESOURCES:

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0:06

Hey guys.

This is Greg Denning and you are in the school of awesome sauce where I share with you Amazing Stories and strategies to help you live an extraordinary life.

Hey, my friends, thanks for joining me for another episode.

0:27

This one's gonna be good because it's literally the one thing that's standing in between you and your dreams.

Like, I know you have dreams, I know you have goals, you want.

You have this fire inside of this spark, this excitement and sometimes that gets doused and sometimes it gets pushed down and maybe you're in a place right now where you kind of given up hope on your dreams.

0:47

And and you're wondering like, man, is it even possible?

Or is that just as it?

Is it a pipe dream, right?

It's Just unrealistic because people all around you, you're surrounded by Voices all the time, they're selling, you know, come back to reality.

It's not realistic.

You can't do that.

Nobody does that, right?

1:03

And we get these negative voices again.

And again again, we keep your people telling us know, people telling us to conform to fit into stop, trying to be different to stop, trying to be bold and stand out and pursue a different path.

And they just, you know, tell you to acquiesce to the status quo and your heart.

1:21

It makes you sick.

You feel like you're dying inside.

Like, I don't want to, I don't want to live like that.

Like I got dreams people, I got goals.

I got things I want to do with my life, but they do understand that.

And you hear these voices, constantly telling you to give up on those thoughts and ideas.

1:37

And so I want to encourage you to dream and dream, big dream a lot and go after gigantic goals and you're like, well, wait a minute, won't that just set me up for disappointment?

If I, if I don't go after them and to that, I say what, what's a life without goals?

1:53

That's that.

Disappointing.

All right.

What's a life?

Without dreams and passions in the pursuit of Adventure and greatness and and trying things that's disappointing and you're going to be disappointed in yourself.

So yeah, go for it.

Go big, so huge goals and have big dreams, and go after them and see what you can do, see what you can accomplish, see what you can make happen, change the world or at least change your world, right?

2:22

Oh man, I get fired up about this.

Duff, I hope your dreamers and I hope you you Kendall, and cultivate that fire in that drive, that I think is in everyone of us.

I think we're born that way.

I think it's in our spiritual DNA, to want to achieve and dream and improve like, to take what we have, like, our bodies and our minds and our, our houses, and our opportunities, and our work, and our talents, and our gifts, and abilities, take, whatever.

2:49

We've been given and try to make it better.

It's just, it's in us, we have this Ark.

This, this ambition, this drive to make things better and I think it's a wonderful beautiful thing.

I think it's a god-given gift to pursue greatness to try to reach towards Excellence, right?

3:08

This quest for greatness in our lives but today I want to talk about the one thing that's standing in the way for it between all of us between us and our dream.

And initially, when I tell you, this thing, you're going to be like, huh, really?

3:25

And that thing is courage.

Courage is the thing that's standing in between you and your dream.

And not just courage but enough courage.

To pursue your thing and say, well why, why is it that the courage and it's in a actually?

3:47

It's a lack of Courage, is the obstacle that standing the way.

It's a lack of Courage, that's keeping us from our dreams.

You think what was it take, courage.

I'm not, like, I'm not fighting off a dragon or something, you know, not fighting a saber-toothed tiger, or whatever it is, you're like, but it's you, and going after this goal and what happens, what's so fascinating, is all the fears that come up and all that.

4:10

Insecurities that come up and all the ridicule and criticism, all the stuff comes up and we're afraid to move forward and our fears literally stop us from living our dreams, from pursuing your goals, and especially from achieving them.

So, let me, let me give you some examples, I'm going to tell some stories from my own life, but just to put this in context, right?

4:29

You, you have this dream you like, you know, I want to try that.

But then you're afraid of sharing that with other people or if you do it, share it, you're concerned now about what they say right and the ridicule that always comes and I promise you guys when you pursue dreams and goals, you will always get criticism from someone and sadly, it's often from your family, your friends at people, closest to you, they're going to shut that stuff.

4:58

Like what?

Like I was so stoked about this.

I was so excited.

I was Like ready to go and they just shoot you down and I do this with people all the time when and one of the recent ones just breaks my heart, this young lady who's so driven and so passionate, and she wants to set some big goals.

5:15

And her parents, her mom and her dad are just shutting her down from goals, that are totally possible, told you will and totally exciting and they keep telling her.

No, you can't do that.

Oh no, you're not.

There's no way you can do that and they're, and they're operating from their own - mind said that probably got passed on to them.

5:33

But her own parents are shooting her down.

She comes to me and Tears.

Like I'm like, no, you got this, you can totally do that.

And it's this isn't even a gigantic crazy goal.

It's like totally something that's totally achievable, but they shut it down and so they're afraid of what people will say, what people will think.

5:49

And then even this one, what people will say and think if they fail, if I try and I don't succeed, then what right?

We're afraid to take the risks because with any big reward, there will be Risks.

And I found that the risk is aligned with the level of a reward, right?

6:11

So the greater risk, the greater reward.

I found that to be true.

That if we want something pretty spectacular, we're going to have to face some pretty big risks.

And those can be emotional risks, or financial risks or even physical risks or social risk, right?

6:29

There's there's it's all involved in all this.

So we're facing all these Fears and and concerns and what will happen.

Like if I, if I get into this and it's not what I thought it would be or if I if I go down that trail and it doesn't go where I think or it does.

6:47

And then I realized I don't want to be there right at all these fears.

Like, we have to have courage and I wholeheartedly believe that you can have any dream.

If you have courage enough to achieve it.

And as we as we go through them and tell some stories now, like, but as you see this, you realize, yeah, it is.

7:08

It's courage.

It's courage along every step of pursuing my dream.

Of my own insecurities.

Do I have what it takes?

Can I do this, right?

You start thinking about what you have to do to achieve your dream and you start you littered all of us are doing this.

7:25

We start questioning, whether we have what it takes and courage to face that courage to learn the skills, courage to get up every time you fall down courage to face the criticism and ridicule that will come Courage to be successful.

7:42

Some people are afraid of failing.

Some people are afraid of succeeding and handling the responsibility and weight that comes with success.

Right.

There's all these sayings and literally as you think through this, now, that I've mentioned it to you, I hope you'll spend time thinking about and really processing and say what what, where am I lacking courage.

8:00

That's keeping me from my dreams and goals but let me share some stories.

So I started out you guys, timid and shy and I've told you that before and I And I didn't want to live, that kind of life.

I wanted to have an amazing marriage, right?

And I wanted to have friends, I hated of all the things I suffered loneliness was the worst and I did not want to be lonely anymore.

8:19

I want to have friends and I wanted to date girls.

So eventually, I could marry the wonderful woman and have incredible marriage.

And I quickly realized, there's no way I'm ever going to have friends or meet girls and then eventually meet my wife.

If I'm so timid and shy that, I can't even talk to people and I can't carry on like your Ation.

8:39

And so I was terrified.

I was terrified to approach people.

I didn't know I was actually terrified to talk to people.

I didn't know.

And if I didn't know somebody well, you know, one of my greatest fears was, it came out years later.

Like, I would get terrified of having to sit next to somebody for an extended period of time because I literally had no idea what I would say or what we talked about.

8:59

But like it was a legit fear.

Like if I had a drive, you know, 30 minutes somewhere with someone I would get just so terrible.

Like what will we talk about?

What on Earth could I possibly say for that long?

I got nothing and it would scare me to death, so the thought of sitting on an airplane.

Next, someone or driving in a car?

9:15

My gosh, right?

Like scared me.

Like what would I say?

Because I didn't know and and I couldn't look people in the eyes.

I remember a gentleman one night was like, Greg look when you're talking to people when you're having a conversation, you need to look people in the eye.

And so I looked up and I tried to hold eye contact with him, but I couldn't do it for more than a second or two before I felt.

9:36

Uncomfortable.

I lift away and he's like hey don't look away.

Look back up and I'd look up and I'm like he's still looking at my eyes and looked down and I was I was terrified and so I'm in this space of like okay my dream my goal is to have friends to date girls to prepare to meet my wife and standing in my way as fear and lack of courage, to some telling you her, it was a lack of courage.

10:01

To develop a skill set that I needed to live, the kind of life that I wanted to live.

That was my dream life I want.

And now you guys, what what I tell people what I tell people I'm mentoring and coaching is like, look to be a social leader is the ability to have a meaningful conversation with anyone anywhere at any time.

10:21

But that's my goal.

That's my jacket to be able to talk to anyone anywhere at any time.

Like people have vastly different life's than me and different opinions and ideas and different.

Now, he's like to be able to connect with anyone anywhere anytime and have a meaningful conversation with them, right?

10:37

That that for me is the epitome of social leadership and connection with other human beings.

And so I wanted to get to that level, but I was way way back and a lack of Courage was what was standing in my way.

10:54

And so I literally, and here's the key element that I want to share with all of you.

The key element here is literally to do what scares you?

Okay, it did if you're afraid to talk to someone talk to them.

11:13

If you're afraid to share your voice, if you're afraid to get on a camera, get on the camera.

If you're afraid to speak in public speak in public, right?

If you're afraid to start your own podcast, start that thing, just get a microphone and start recording like whatever it is you're afraid to do.

11:33

You're afraid to try a business, start a business.

If you're afraid of selling, then go out and sell something like you just You, you do the thing that scares you and and I know they're like, well that's what I'm afraid of.

Obviously I would do that if I wasn't afraid to do it, if I had the courage to do it but what's interesting and ironic and almost seems counterintuitive that the courage doesn't come independent of the thing.

12:00

It comes because of the thing.

It's almost like Marcus Aurelius said that like the impediment isn't in the way, the impediment is the way that thing that you're afraid to do is actually your Key to courage and success.

And so I realize that and so, I said, you know, I'm going to literally force myself to face that fear.

12:21

And so, I intentionally put myself into situations where I could not back out.

I couldn't get away from it and I had to get in front of people and talk to them.

And so I forced myself into situations to talk to girls, which was probably my biggest fear, To have to talk to all kinds of people from different backgrounds and situations to just start greeting people.

12:44

And I had this, this good friend of mine, he would talk to everyone.

He was smiling laughing and I'd walk along with him.

And again, I went into a situation, I was forced into a situation that I end up meeting him and meeting other people.

And I was forced to be in front of crowds, which terrified me in that forced me into that situation and and eventually on in that particular situation I ended up getting in front of thousands of people all the time ended up performing Which made me face my fears.

13:10

I had to just face it and I did it with sports.

I'm like, hey, I'm gonna get in sports and sports did it.

And I had to get the Guinness for especially one-on-one sports like wrestling.

I started wrestling and when you get on the mat it's just you and the other guy and everybody watching.

And that was terrifying to me, but I forced myself to do it.

13:28

And then I met this friend of mine and he just would greet everyone and he was one of the most jovial happy people and ask them when I'm like, how do you do that, man?

How you know, all these people is like, I don't know those people, I just greet everyone.

I'm like what how Do that.

He's like I made a commitment years ago that I would greet and smile at everyone that I made eye contact with.

13:45

I was like, that is beautiful, that's what I want and I wanted that.

I sincerely wanted that, but it terrified me and he said, we'll just try it, just do it.

And so, I just started looking at people and like, kind of look up, you know, like, oh crap and they look over and I'd smile and like, waving.

14:01

And I got some funny, looks like, well, I don't know you who are you?

What are you doing, right?

And I'm like, oh, see it does it work?

It's like no.

Keep going, keep crying.

That's why I kept trying.

I'm like, hey, how's it going?

That's and you guys.

I know it.

Sounds silly.

But like, for me that, that scared me, it really like, it took a lot of Courage for me to look at a stranger and just say, hey, how you doing?

14:22

It was, it was sickening for me but I kept doing it and start working people.

Hey, what's up?

And I was like, oh that's not a big deal.

That's hey, how you doing?

Hi and I smile and I smile at girls and wave and and sometimes I get some bad responses and sometimes I get good ones.

I was like this isn't that big of a deal.

14:38

And that's one of the big, big principles I want to teach today in this episode, like when you face the thing, you're afraid of and you do it often, you quickly start to realize, oh, I had no reason to be afraid of that thing.

14:55

Let me tell you another story about that in just a minute, they just rock my world.

But as I pursued that was like, okay I can do this.

And so then I started just talking to people and then I kept going like, okay, I'm saying here in a crowd, I'm going to talk to that person and I'll go to dance.

15:13

I'm gonna go talk to that girl and ask her to dance with me.

And then I'm going to go, hey, I don't know anybody here.

I'm gonna go talk to those guys and they look pretty cool.

I'm going to go talk to him introduce myself and I literally was forcing myself and you guys the feared and go away.

I was like I had my, I am a stomach and a knock.

15:30

And I'm sure my face was bright red, and I was like, Palms, were sweating, but I'm like, I have to do this.

And the more I did it.

Principle number two here.

The more I did it, the more comfortable I became at it and the more I did it, the more competent I became at it, which I actually got better at it, right?

15:50

Because I just forced myself to practice it and with competence, always comes confidence.

And I just forced myself to do it again and again, and again, Then until now I'm totally comfortable talking to almost anyone almost anywhere at almost any time.

16:06

I'll talk to a complete stranger in the grocery store line and tap them on the shoulder and asked them what their life dream is right there.

Like, where do I?

Don't know you.

Why you ask me that?

And I love it.

I love having meaningful and Powerful conversations with people you guys and it's Way Beyond the chitchat and I got sick of that, you know, initially I was like oh you know, the weather and sports and politics and just the superficial.

16:30

Us.

But I moved past that because I was like, this is this isn't meaningful.

This is it shallow like a last depth and meaning.

So now I'm like, I ask big questions.

What are your goals?

What are your dreams?

What do you, what do you struggle with?

What do you want to achieve?

You could do anything, what would you do?

Where would you go?

Like, how do you want to live your life like?

16:46

And I love asking people about them, and their story and their dreams and hopes and goals and and like, it's meaningful.

And I connected people and people open up to me and share things with me.

I'll tell you guys stories and coming episodes.

People share things with me.

17:03

That would blow you away, the blow me away and frequently my friends frequently.

People say to me Greg, I've never told anyone this, but I feel like I can tell you and I need to tell you and then they proceeded to tell me a story that just blows me away.

17:26

Because I'm willing to listen and ask hard questions and look him in the eye and and give them my full and complete attention, right?

And so now I've moved and I love speaking, I love speaking on the stage, I love like doing these podcasts, I love making videos, I love connecting with huge crowds and one-on-one around the world and loved it.

17:48

And so literally, what was my greatest weakness became one of my greatest strengths and how did it?

By actually, doing it by forcing myself to do the thing.

I was afraid of actually brought the courage that I needed.

So it wasn't sometimes, we think, oh, once I get the courage, then I'll do that thing.

18:06

But courage comes through doing the thing.

Well, let me let me share another example, When Rachel and I decided to load up our family and move to, we left my job and we did scheme crate.

It was crazy.

We're like, okay, we're just gonna go over this, we're trying the entrepreneurial thing, we're trying to run a business and we decided, you know, we're going to move our family.

18:25

Lee we loaded up our for little kids in our car and we decided we were going to drive to Costa Rica and try to live there.

And we so we drove down, you know, through Arizona, had a great time down there.

We get to the border.

And we'd never been in Mexico or about drive across the border.

18:41

And we heard all these horror stories.

This was in 2007 and like I was squeezing the steering wheel with both hands like white-knuckle.

Both my wife and I were so nervous or stomachs whether or not it was just Crazy and we cross the border into Mexico with are for little kids and we're like, what are we doing?

19:01

We're going to a place.

We've never been, I spoke Spanish, nobody else did.

But like, we don't know this place.

We've heard about all the drug dealers and the murders and the craziness and getting sick and where will we stay?

And what we do and and we were just terrified you guys like, can you sense us like just sick to our stomachs and we're driving across and then if you've been across the border there's like not much there and you drive.

19:25

For a while you drive for a while and then we start to relax.

We're on this nice highway just driving along this beautiful desert country and like and we started to relax and we're like, what were we?

What were we?

So afraid of, we get in there and we start meeting all these wonderful people.

19:42

So kinds of these beautiful beaches and these nice restaurants and literally Rachel we look at each other.

Like, what in the world were we?

So afraid of this is crazy and we ended up spending six That first trip just driving through Mexico and Central America and these the crazy border.

20:00

Crossings and those were knots and like the food and the places, we have these great experience and you guys over the last several years we end up spending several years living in Mexico, we spent a bunch of time because we were back through again later on we lived we would spend much time at beliefs in Guatemala.

20:18

We end up spending almost two years over two different times, almost two years living in Guatemala.

We went travel through El Salvador.

We Lived in Nicaragua for a while, lived in Costa Rica.

Now on two different times for a total of about three years.

And then we went into Panama multiple times and and all that like we end up like loving the Latin culture and always learning Spanish and being down there and it was crazy.

20:40

Like we did, we realize that our fear was totally unfounded and I meet people all the time that are struggling and maybe you do too.

They struggle with anxiety and you get super anxious and it's interesting.

I anxiety you guys is And this imagined fear that something we might have heard about or might experience before.

21:03

But we imagine it now in our mind is amazing like that it can it can be so creative and imaginative but very often stirs up the - it imagines the - imagine everything going wrong, right and it goes to the lowest level, like if you're talking about, have like to start a business but then all sudden your mind like sees you in the gutter dying of poverty.

21:23

No friends, no family.

No money.

And you take your last breath in the gutter as you die because you tried to start a business, right?

The Mind does that.

They'll just spiral down all the way down to the worst possible scenario.

And then you're sitting there going up.

There's no I can do it.

21:39

I can't start a business.

Are you kidding me?

Oh no.

Right.

And we go to these fears and so I want to challenge you to look at what you're afraid of like get really, really clear.

What is it when you think about pursuing your dream, what scares you because you're like oh my gosh, that terrifies me, what is it?

21:57

What terrifies you?

Well what if it doesn't work out?

What do you mean?

What if it doesn't work out like zero in on that?

What do you mean?

Well what if I lose all my money?

Okay.

What if what if you lose all your money could you?

What's the worst case scenario?

22:12

They're like and literally go in your mind.

Force, your mind to go.

Okay, what is it?

What is it?

Exactly, you're afraid of and often, what you find is you this fear is unfounded and you work your way down.

You're like, oh actually, you know, I'm really afraid of what my friends would think, if I failed, okay, go to the worst-case scenario.

22:31

What if you fail and your friends think you're retarded because your failed Can you deal with that or go talk to your friends?

Be like, hey, I'm thinking of starting a business like if I just totally flopped it.

What do you think?

And and if they're good friends, I'd be like you know what will still support?

You will still love you and if it's your dream, you should try it and then I'll send you a day.

22:50

What was I afraid of you?

Get what I'm saying?

You guys like, we have to get clear about what we're afraid of and why, and get get down to that clear level and be like, okay can I handle that?

Could I handle like that worst case scenario?

If I, if I try, let's Try to start a YouTube channel and it just bombs.

23:10

Am I okay with that?

Oh yeah.

Because it's better to try and fail than ever to try it all.

You got I'm saying and so you get clear on your fear and then you face it and what you're going to find is a lot of your fears are unfounded, especially when you start doing it, it's unfounded.

23:26

And then you might find that sometimes in this happen to us, we've attempted so many things.

We live by this ready, fire aim philosophy like we just try it, we just go for it.

And many times, we have fallen right on our faces, socially financially emotionally physically, the blop, we try something, and it doesn't work.

23:46

And you know what we found every time in that to that, our fear of, the worst case scenario was actually way worse than the actual worst case scenario, where we try something, we lose everything and like, okay, that's pretty bad, but it's not near as bad as I thought it was going to be and what I feared it would.

24:06

And guess what?

We're still alive.

We still have each other.

We're still happy and healthy and and we can rebuild like this.

Okay, we learned our lesson.

Let's do this again, right?

So like learn to learn to face those fears, cultivate that courage.

And and if you want to start small, start start right now by doing things that scare you.

24:25

So maybe let's take something like bungee jumping.

Let's say it just terrifies.

You the thought of bungee jumping, just terrify, you go bungee jumping and you like, are you crazy that they're, it's totally safe, go.

A safe reputable place, you know, wrap it around, your ankles, bomb off that thing.

Have them push you if you have to, like just do it and do what they say and do it the right way.

24:45

And then you bounce a couple times and it'll be like, tell from terrifying and thrill and you'll get down and you're like, oh man, I'm totally alive.

I'm totally healthy.

I'm not hurt.

Nothing happened, I'm at school.

I'm, I did it.

And what happens you like all sudden, you get it all his courage?

Like, I just did this, I just did something that terrifies me and also in your little courage meter goes, bloop it moves the needle up.

25:06

And you're like, hey, I'm doing it and you can start.

Well, I'm afraid to maybe you're afraid to try foreign Foods.

So tonight go out to a foreign restaurant right and gets just go in there like hey what's the most bizarre thing on your menu?

That's good.

And then like okay I'll tell you that and just eat it right?

25:25

And as you do more things, you start to cultivate it.

And and you're with your friends like your, you're at the park or wherever, you know, whatever you're doing, I don't know where you go, what you do your University, or you work, and you want to present a new project or, you know, pursue new goal, ask for a raise or, you know, whatever it is, we're afraid of.

25:43

Just try it, try these things, you're afraid of.

And the more things that you do that scare you, the more you'll cultivate courage.

This is this making sense like, I'm trying to say this in a bunch of different ways, so it like it hits home courage comes from doing the things that scare you.

26:00

So find, as many things you can at that scare you and do those things.

Maybe it's holding a snake or a spider or touching a mouse.

Go to the pet store and hold the mouse.

Go goal, I go to the pet store and like let a boa constrictor like sit on your shoulders, right?

26:18

Let you see, don't say I'm trying to stir up some fiercer.

Some of you are like dude you're screaming.

Like what is it like snowboarding or skiing or went and took the kids snowboarding last night?

And there was this girl there skiing, she was visibly, just horrified, she's on the little kitty slope going down just trembling with fear.

26:34

Are freaking out and I was so proud of her.

She went a couple more times and she end up doing and she was kind of skiing down a little kid slope by the end of the night and I was I do I'm like way to go that's awesome go for it.

Like you tell she was a terrified of running into people I'm like hey whatever you can run me over like just keep going to keep trying it.

26:50

So identify these things that scare you and go do them.

That is how you get courage.

It's not going to be sitting there in your comfortable, little space.

You know, you're at home in your bedroom and your comfortable bed.

With nobody there and your little happy place trying to muster up, courage.

27:11

In my experience, that doesn't work because you're staying in your comfort zone.

So do the things that get you outside, your comfort zone also, and you're going to find number one.

It's not near as bad as you thought number two, like you get stronger, you get more courage and then you do it again and again and again.

27:30

And again you start building it up again and again and again and you just keep doing it in different.

Is it all sudden you're it's like this muscle, you're exercising, you're doing your workouts, right?

You're doing exercise regularly and you start to get in shape.

Courageously.

27:46

I don't know how to say.

You're building up your courage muscles and all the sudden you're just ripped and you're confident and you're like, bring it anything, bring it on and you literally can do this K.

Every one of you can do this you can muster up and build and cultivate this courage.

28:02

It's not like oh they're lucky, they have courage and I don't it's a muscle, it's a skill, it's a skill, you can cultivate and build and make happen, but you have to be intentional about it.

And you have to work on it, you have to exercise it just like you do your body.

28:18

So you guys do this, man get get in the game like right down right now, just sit down right now, right?

Out of the things that scare you maybe 10, or 15, or 20 things that you've all never do this Gary go skydiving, do whatever you got to do face that fear and it gives you a tremendous courage.

28:34

Okay.

You guys want a story and we'll go along until this epic story.

I was going to save this to save this for later, but I'm gonna share the story.

So we're driving down from Alaska on our last set of Panama over Landing Journey, we stopped to visit some friends in Idaho and we're coming along went to this place called, Twin Falls Idaho and as we're pulling into town, we cross over this bridge and it's a 500 foot bridge over the Snake River and you're like driving across looking over going, ho hold that.

29:07

That is huge.

So we went over to our friends house or talk.

They're like, hey let's go check out the bridge.

So there's there's a beautiful waterfall there.

So we went and saw the waterfall and the wood over the bridge and we're standing there.

And this was on a Sunday afternoon and we're taking some pictures and we went over on the bridge and you can like what you walk on the bridge and you look over.

29:24

And it's like, you know, I'm talking about when you look over on this steep steep Cliff or Bridge or building, and you get that feeling like your nerves, like you feel, you feel, the blood like going out of your arms and and you get shortness of breath and your hearts pounding and you look over the edge of the Lagoon.

29:40

Oh my gosh, like, I can feel it right now.

I'm like you, maybe you are too.

I'm describing that you look over in his so far down.

You just start to tremble and shake and you get afraid.

It was that feeling and it was terrifying.

And and I went, we went back around like, whoa, and I saw this sign that said they do base jumping.

29:59

Now years before that I had sold my, I'm like I want to base jump babe, I told my wife want to base jump and I kind of put it on my bucket list of things to do in life, but never had any idea where how Anything had no plans but it's like, I want to base jump sometime and realize they do it.

I'm like what this crazy store I went over and had a little flyer on the door, they were closed up.

30:17

And I said $400 to Tandem base-jumping, I'm like, 400 bucks to jump with some dude strapped to my back.

Like, no, thanks and so I just go out and I started talking to people, right?

Because I had cultivated the courage muscle to talk to strangers and to talk to people.

30:35

So I'm, you know, there's guys just chilling on the park and I want to start talking this guy.

Just randomly, I was just talking because again this is my way of being.

Now, I just naturally talk to people.

I love people, I love meeting new people connecting because I had cultivated that very skill.

I'd face the fear of talking to strangers.

30:51

Now, I'm really good at it.

So I went up and I started talking to him and turns out.

It's Mike from California.

I'm like, what are you doing here?

So I came out to film some videos base jumping off that bridge.

I was like what?

That's so cool.

It turns out he's a stuntman in Hollywood and he was here making some films.

31:09

Those and I was like, that's amazing man.

So calm, like, I've always wanted to base jump and he's like will shoot you guys.

Like I have an extra pack.

I brought extra parachute.

You could jump with us tomorrow morning and I just felt my gut you know?

Oh no, the fear, right?

31:25

And he's like just give me give me a little money and you can jump with us and I was like, man.

Okay they're charging 400 bucks.

I wonder if he's gonna like charge me 350 or something.

I'm like well how much he said?

I don't know man.

Give me 20 bucks, I think 20 bucks or You serious is like 20, I give you $20 and I can base jump.

31:41

He's like yeah, then your problem.

Now, I find out, right?

Do you have to skydive 200 times before you should base jump solo, right?

I've never been skydiving.

I have now is amazing, but I've never been skydiving at a time.

And I was going to base, jump solo, but he's like here's one condition.

31:59

He's like, you don't know how to land.

So, if you go down trying to land on the ground, you'll break your legs.

He's like, so you have to land in the water.

So I turn in my buddy and I'm like, he has a boat.

I'm like, hey, will you get in the boat?

And we For me in the water and she's like, yeah, she's okay, you base jump, you have to land in the water.

So I'm like sweet, let's do it.

He's like, all right, meet us here at 9:00 tomorrow morning.

32:16

So my wife and I, we go home that night and we're terrified, you guys.

Oh my goodness, we're like oh what am I about to do?

I have five children, a beautiful wife and a wonderful life like I don't want to die.

I'm not about taking unnecessary risks, right?

I don't know if there's any chance of me dying.

I'm out like it's not for but but if I can pull this off, I want to do it.

32:36

And so we're like we're both had a hard time sleeping that night.

Cause we're both so scared and we go back in the morning and I just kind of put out to God and to the universe.

Like, okay, look, I'm not, I'm not in on this.

Like, if it's dangerous, like, whatever.

Don't they'll let it work out and I'm good, but if it's okay, if it happened, like I'll do it.

32:54

So we kind of took that out there.

Like, if it works great, if it doesn't work.

Great, I'm not, I'm not married to this thing.

So we're waiting at 9:00.

Not there 9:00 about 905.

He's not there.

I'm okay.

Well, I guess not, it's not meant to be, let's go.

So, we load up, we're driving out.

And as he pulls in, he's like, oh I am here.

Sorry, we're late.

We, you know, did some shooting some videos and we're ready to go.

33:12

Let's do this thing.

So I'm like, oh man, so nervous because I come here, I want to, I want to show you why.

This is the safest place in the world, the base jump.

And here's how it works.

So he sat there, any taught my wife and I he taught me and my wife all about, sorry, I'm the grammar thing.

33:29

There you have you guys.

It's a grammar thing.

So he taught my wife and me about the science and the aerodynamics and how it works.

And Why?

This is the safest place and all this thing, he walks through and you guys literally while he explained it, it was, it was our lack of understanding, that made it so terrifying.

33:50

It's what we didn't know that scared us and when he explained how everything works and how to be safe and he would throw the pilot Chute, it would be open and open automatically like he explained all the safety, how to do everything.

Everything I was supposed to do detail by detail and he's like, we're gonna have three jumpers, they're going to be right there with you.

34:07

You're good man.

And as he explained that to me and to my wife, we like, all of our fears went away and we're like, okay, let's do this thing, right?

Because I understood it, I talked to an expert and I knew what was going to happen.

What I had to do with, how the parachute worked.

34:23

How was it?

You know, how he was.

He said it all up so it was just going to work beautifully.

I'm like done.

So you guys, we walk over there.

All I had on, was my I think I went, I think it went Barefoot.

All I had on was my swimsuit and my parachute, that's it.

So we walk over There and these guys are hardcore, like stuntman, like, they're these are course.

34:42

I'm like, I can't back out on this.

I can't be a chick and I can't be standing there counting to 3 20 or 30 times, and then back out, like I gotta just go.

And so I walk over there and I climb over the rail and the rail you guys so high, you can't have you know, both feet on the ground.

It's like one or the other so I'm like, leaning over like, oh my gosh, this is terrifying.

35:01

Oh my Palms are sweating.

My chest is pounding.

I leaned over the bridge because I'm a parachute on.

I can't stand straight up.

So I'm like, leaning out.

I got my feet.

On the edge of holding on the rails, both hands behind me, you know, pushed out by the parachute looking down and way way out, there's this little tiny boat and my kids are in my wife or down there in the boat, waiting for me.

35:20

So tiny, it's so far away.

I was like, oh my gosh, what am I doing?

This is crazy.

And he's like, he had the pilot Chute in his hand and he said, okay?

When you jump, I'm just going to let this go and it'll pull out the main Chute and you just grab hold of it and kind of guide yourself down to drop right in the water.

35:38

Then disconnect from your Chute so it doesn't sink and you're good.

And so I was like, okay, 3, 2 1.

Wow, and just free falling, right?

35:57

The craziest feeling ever just to Be Free Falling.

No cords attached, no rope nothing.

Wow, 500 feet and the Chute opens up.

The pilot caught pulled out the main Chute opened up.

Pull my reach up, grab the handles and then just you're flying you just gliding through the air and I just made some turns and swings went down and landed in the water right by the boat.

36:20

Just absolutely epic.

Like what are the coolest experiences of my life and unhook the parish?

Bring it in climbing the boat.

Like yeah, mic stands on the rail.

Does like a double backflip, then comes down, opens up a shoot and then you know disconnects from his shoot about 30 feet above the water and does a couple more flips and turns and twists and Dives in.

36:41

And I mean it was, it was epic awesomeness and we climb in the boat and I reached down to turn off my GoPro, and I realized that in my nervousness, I hadn't turned it on.

So I literally did not record.

One of the coolest things I've ever done and then we pick up my arm, like my got in turn on mic.

36:57

Camera, I missed it all and he's like, well, let's do it again.

And so we went over.

We let us shoot dry out.

We talk.

We connected actually end up like rescuing this girl.

And one of the jumpers was an ER doctor we jumped in and helped her.

She'd broken her leg and got the amulet, some kind of helped her out rescued her.

37:13

So I've done some EMT stuff and so we did it and we went and jumped again.

You guys in this time he wanted up the the small shoot, the pilot Chute.

He threw it after me.

So my free fall was big and it was awesome.

So I ended up base jumping twice.

For 40 bucks and it was amazing and I face those fears and I did, I did something incredible right that for me was a huge deal and it it just boosts your confidence like and things don't scare me anymore.

37:41

Like, are you kidding me?

I've been base jumping twice and like, and it just it boosts your confidence in it, it builds you and your character and like, you're able to do more things.

So you guys the big takeaway here is literally, there's there's levels of courage.

37:59

That are needed for you to pursue your dream and to achieve it.

So right now today make a list of the things that scare you that you know, you need to do.

And start doing them.

Give friends that will support you and encourage you ask them to hold you accountable.

38:16

Ask them to go with you and start doing things that scare you and start building that Courage by facing those fears.

And, and with a long-term goal, you guys, I hope you have this goal with a long-term goal of being absolutely courageous and it's not, it's not the absence of fear.

38:34

Fear doesn't always go away.

But it's facing that fear.

Its managing a fear, its understanding it and then moving forward.

And as you get more courageous and more daring, in a sense you taking on adventures, you become a Powerhouse and that's the goal.

38:54

That's the dream.

That's the vision to become a Powerhouse of Courage.

So you have what it takes that level of courage to pursue whatever dream or goal.

You want to go after whatever ambition you have whatever you know you need to do You have the courage to get it done.

39:10

So, let's all become courageous beings together, right?

Powerhouses, where we're out doing things that matter and taking big, bold action and inspiring others to do the same.

So let's get out.

Make it happen.

You guys.

Awesome is always an option.

39:28

If you have the courage to do what it takes reach upward.

Everybody, thanks so much for listening this episode.

I hope you got a lot of value out of it and found some things that you can apply to your life right away.

39:47

Hey, I'm being totally sincere when I say I live to help you live your store near lives.

So I hope you reach out to me.

If you have any questions or let me know how I can help you in any important area of your life.

And in fact, you know, this this podcast is brought to you by the school of awesomesauce monthly coaching.

40:06

Around me, take advantage of that.

Get in there.

It's the best way to get a break through to the next level.

So you can level up your health, your spirituality, your emotions, your mind, your relationships, your finances business, every part of your life, just get in there where you have a coach and a mentor, you have a supportive Community to make things happen.

40:29

So jump in there, take advantages, try it out.

Get in there with us and level up your life.

See you on the inside.

I'd reach upward.