Live fully by overcoming fear

1. Mitigate risk: Break your risks down into the smallest pieces and mitigate them individually. For example, on my first circumnavigation flight, my greatest fear was what would happen if I needed to ditch in the open ocean. The good news is, statistics indicate that 95 per cent of people survive the water impact. My plane had airbags installed to improve my chances on impact, and I memorised the emergency procedures.

How can you break down, examine, and prepare for the risks you are facing now? Bring them out of the recesses of your mind where they live in fear and take them into the real world where you can create action steps to address possible outcomes. Once we have mitigated the risk, what remains is simple chance.

2. Experience makes a difference: Don’t give up on your next flight adventure or that ideal aviation job you’ve been searching for out of fear. Look at your experience, and take inspiration from what you’ve accomplished so far. What have you overcome or achieved that shows you this next step in life is doable for you? For me, when I face fears about my current circumnavigation of the poles, it’s helpful to remind myself that this is not my first rodeo. I have flown to dozens of countries over the past few years. Flying the dirt strips in isolated parts of southern Africa where the terrain was designated “inhospitable” and the rivers were filled with crocodiles make this trip seem manageable in comparison.

3. Use available technology: Amelia Earhart never had GPS satellite technology as part of her plane’s avionics panel — not to mention that we now have smartphones and tablets that are remarkably capable backups. I’ve even used them to navigate north of the Arctic Circle!

How can the incredible technology that exists today help you to take the next step in your life or career? You have so much information and connection right at your fingertips. How will you choose to use it?

4. Build a strong support team: How many of your friends do you feel really support you and your life goals? I used to have a large group of friends, but many of them seemed to suck my energy dry and leave me depleted, while others simply seemed neutral or indifferent. I left many of these relationships behind to make room for the new people that I would attract that were in better alignment with me and more uplifting. You’ll feel more confident taking your next step when you know people have your back.

5. Silence your mind: Have you ever heard the expression that FEAR means “false evidence appearing real”? What this means is that 99 per cent of what you are worrying over is never going to happen. All we really need to be concerned about is the 1 per cent, so why not stop our constant, fear-based storytelling?

There is no dividend for freaking out in the cockpit of a plane or, for that matter, in life. What if, instead, we reminded ourselves about the times we kicked ass and persevered? As Don Miguel Ruiz says, “If you are going to tell yourself a story, you might as well make it a good one!”

So, if you do these things then what? For one, you aren’t seeing your world through the filter of fear. Things are going to look very different. The more you confront your fears, the easier it gets to overcome them, and your confidence starts to build. Hey, maybe this fear thing is manageable and your body is just tipping you off that you have a little work to do with a lesson or two to learn!

Take action and embrace this new life that the citizens of the world are currently presented. It’s the universe’s way of shaking things up and giving us new opportunities to grow. And to do this, we must sometimes push past our own (or others’) considerable resistance.

About: “Peace Pilot” Robert DeLaurentis is an aviation circumnavigator, author, speaker, pilot, real estate entrepreneur, philanthropist, and Navy Gulf War veteran. He is the founder of the “Citizen of the World for the World” global peace movement to connect humanity through the wonder of flight and the power of courageous action. His books include the best-selling Zen Pilot: Flight of the Passion and the Journey Within, Flying Thru Life: How to Grow Your Business and Relationships Through Applied Spirituality, and his two newest books, Peace Pilot: To the Ends of the Earth and Beyond (coming 2021) and the children’s book The Little Plane that Could. Learn more at www.PoleToPoleFlight.com