On June 12th, 2009, my life changed. That was the day I became a sailor.  My little town has a tall ship, a replica of an 1811 sloop called the Friends Good Will.  She was scheduled to sail through the Great Lakes to Detroit's River Fest and I figured that making a part of that journey would give me great fodder for a travel article.  But when I disembarked after 3 days at sea, I took with me a lot more than article fodder.  I got a brand new lesson in courage.

My lesson involved the ship's bowsprit.  For non-sailor readers, the bowsprit is the long, pointy thing on the end of a ship.  It's used to secure the head sails, but it's also a really fun place to climb, sit, and survey the world. IF you're brave enough to climb out there.  I wanted to, I really did, and I did get one foot on the bowsprit.  But I just couldn't seem to get both of my feet off the safety of the deck. 

So here comes the lesson in courage.  I routinely tell my audiences to step back from what frightens them, look their fear in the face, and ask themselves, "What's the worst that can happen?"  That's exactly what I did. 

 

The worst that could happen was that I would fall.  If that happened, what next?  Well, I was harnessed to the riggings, so even if I fell, I'd just dangle there until someone hauled me up.  I'm a pretty strong swimmer, so if the harness gave out, it would only be a short, albeit cold, swim till the ship came about to get me.  And the crew of experienced sailors encouraging me would be there to help me.  Guess what?  It worked: I swallowed my fear, mustered my courage, and made it.  What a ride - and what a view!

How can we translate this into real life courage?
1. When you're afraid, give yourself a time out.  Step back, sit down, close your eyes, take a deep breath, or whatever you need to get time and space away from the problem.

3. When you ponder the answers to that question, ask another: "Are my fears are warranted?"  If they are, you'll be in a less stressful frame of mind to deal with them. And if they're not warranted, you'll be equipped to move on courageously, minus the fear. 
 
Good luck sailors!