Many of us allow our fear to stop us in our tracks. All it takes
is a less than encouraging word, a negative facial expression, or
a less than positive opinion, and we give up before we even get
started.
Were afraid of:
- the word no because it means failure the word yes
because it means responsibility the disapproving look because
it means rejection
- the whispers and grins because they mean judgment, and
- the absence of support because it means abandonment
Lets look at these five catalysts to failure and how they may be
overcome.
Abandonment
Little James Earl was scared. His father had left the family to
become a prize fighter and actor. His mother had left to earn
funds
as a tailor. The Great Depression had stolen his family and
he was about to lose the only life he had ever known.
His grandparents had adopted him and now they were on their way
to Michigan.
Rejection
Though his life in Mississippi had been one of abandonment, it was
all the 5-year-old boy had known. The move to Michigan so
traumatized him he developed a stutter.
His first day of school was a disaster. His stuttering made his
classmates laugh at him. It was the final straw for a frightened
little boy. He closed his mouth and simply quit talking for eight
years!
James Earl was completely mute with the exception of
conversations he had with himself when he was all alone. He found
solace in the written word generating poetry to release the raging
in his soul.
Judgment
As is almost always
the case, one person who saw beyond his limitations
released James Earl from his self-imposed prison. That one person
was an English teacher who saw talent in the silent 13-year-old.
She pushed him beyond his fear by forcing him into public speaking
insisting he recite a poem in front of the class every day.
Cant you imagine his terror when he first stood in front of his
classmates? What made him do it? Was it only the teachers
insistence? No. It was a deep desire to break free of cost from his prison
and speak all the things that had sat silently in his heart during
all those months. He chose to feel the fear and then do it anyway!
Failure
He stuttered. He stammered. He endured the sympathetic and scornful
looks of fellow students. He endured the laughing. But he did it.
He faced the fear and forced himself to speak. Day after day. Week
after week. He hung onto the encouragement of the teacher who believed
in him. And it worked. His stuttering became less. He learned to
control his voice.
Responsibility
His victories made him look for more challenges. James Earl began to
take acting lessons. His early lessons in perseverance gave him the
courage to push beyond the prejudices against black actors. He chose
to take as many different types of roles as he could stretching his
limitations and refusing to be pigeon-holed with any stereotypes.
Beyond the Fear
James Earl Jones is now known for his deep authoritative voice.
Perhaps you understand
him as the voice of Star Wars Darth Vader or as
Mufasa in the Lion King. You see him almost daily on commercials. He
has starred on Broadway and been in many movies. He has been laden
with Tony, Emmy and Obie Awards.
People look at him today and see a confident actor with a deep,
resonant voice. The next instant you see him, look deeper. . .
James Earl Jones grand secret to success is that he chose to
push beyond his fears. He chose to change the reality of a young
boy who had lived in silence for eight many years. He chose to face
ridicule and scorn in order to be free. I might
only imagine how many
decades
passed before he could open his mouth without being afraid of
what would come out.
So many of us let our fears stop us. We are
afraid of how we will
appear. Were afraid of what everybody will think. Were afraid
well fail. And so.
. . we do nothing. We exchange fear for regret.
Fear will pass. Fear can be conquered. Fear will fade away in the
face of determined action.
Regret well, youll live with that for the rest of your life.
What are you afraid of? Name the fear. Choose to face it. And
take action to conquer it today! You, too, might
live a life of
success by feeling the fear and moving beyond it.
