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Leading Through Fear
Last Saturday, I had a surfing accident on Ocean Beach in San Francisco. I have a bruised face and a black eye, however, I’m grateful that there is no permanent damage to my face or my eye. Right after the accident, I was sobbing and shaking on the beach, gripped by pain and fear. Twenty four hours later, I started experiencing flashes and black spots in my left eye, leading to extreme anxiety and fear of losing my vision. Happily I’m fine, having been checked out by talented opthamologists.
Bruises will fade, the resilience and lessons persist. Fear is a natural part of leadership and I’m sharing three lessons on how to feel the fear to become a better leader.
1. Fear is normal. Fear is part of leading.
Many of us want to think that our leaders are fearless and always have the right answers in the face of uncertainty. This expectation makes it tough to be the leader. Leaders feel that we have to be perfect, to have our acts together, and always know what to do next. If we feel any fear, the first instinct is often to bury it, to ignore this inconvenient emotion and instead move into action and problem-solving.
That’s not the healthiest way of addressing fear. Unrecognized fear, like the unacknowledged elephant in the room, will pop up later, perhaps as anxiety and sleepless nights.
