Hey Reader,
You know that feeling where you’re staring at a big opportunity, and instead of feeling fired up, you feel tense.
Most people don’t go ahead because they don’t feel capable of it… yet.
But what if fear is a green light to find out how capable you are?
In today’s issue, we’ll discuss how you can reframe fear as a powerful way to renew your energy to unleash your highest potential.
🗯️ Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay’s ascent of Mount Everest
Let’s talk about how Sir Edmund Hillary of New Zealand and Tenzing Norgay, a Sherpa from Nepal, became the first confirmed climbers to reach the summit of Mount Everest, the highest point on Earth, in 1953.
At the time, climbing Everest was seen as almost impossible.
Many climbers before them had failed. Some had died.
The conditions were brutal, and no one knew if a human could even survive at that altitude.
Still, Hillary and Norgay went ahead to find out if they could.
They were not so sure they’d make it.
They were scared. I mean, who wouldn’t be? The risks were massive.
But they did it driven by curiosity, purpose, and the desire to find out what they’re capable of.
And they reached the summit.
That’s guts right there.
It’s clear poof that the human spirit, fueled by courage over fear, can attain uncommon feats.
🧠 Fear doesn’t always mean you’re not ready
This thing called fear is inevitable.
Every elite performer, no matter how seasoned or wealthy, hits a point where they feel fear again.
Have you wondered why it doesn’t show up when you’re doing something you’ve already mastered?
It comes when you’re stretching into something new.
Right before something big, a new role, or a tougher challenge.
Because you haven’t done it before, and you have little to no knowledge about it.
So naturally, it threatens your confidence, and you feel fear.
And that’s okay.
Given that you’re used to winning, you’re used to being the best, and you’re used to having things figured out.
Then those crazy thoughts try to get into your head.
“Maybe I’m not cut out for this.” “Maybe I got lucky before.” “What if I can’t pull this off?”
Nah, don’t sit with those thoughts.
That’s not the point of that feeling of fear.
There’s something else it’s inviting you to do.
❤️ What if “I’m scared” became “Let’s find out”?
Think about it.
Your best qualities, the most impressive things you’ve built, and even the confidence you walk with today…
None of that came from doing what you already know how to do.
It came from f*cking around and finding out.
It came from the stretchy, scary, shaky, not-ready moments you leaned into anyway.
That’s the point.
When you see new challenges as digging deep into your potential, fear loses its grip over you.
You become excited to see what you’re about to discover.
You start to act from a place of self-discovery, not some big problem you must conquer.
You stop needing to have it all figured out and start being the kind of person who figures things out as you go.
Your instincts become sharper and spontaneous.
You become less reactive, self-conscious, and less addicted to perfection.
You’re open to change, flexibility, and a future-proof mindset.
Because you’re not afraid of discomfort.
Rather, you’re using it to find out how unstoppable you really are.
🤲 What’s a smarter way to test your edge?
If you want to find out what you’re really capable of, you have to provoke it.
Here are 3 ways to help you practice the “let’s find out” mindset and train your brain to associate risk with reward:
- Flirt with fear (haha). This is where you write down things you’re currently scared to do. Like a not-yet-capable list. Pick one that feels closest to you. Do something tiny that brings your body closer to the heat. That’s how you groom your mind to act a little before you’re prepared.
- Stack fear with fascination. Right before you go into the thing that scares you, ask yourself, “What am I hoping to find out about myself on the other side of this?” The excitement to find out lets your system start to feel like you can handle it. And that changes everything.
- Say yes before you know how. Commit to something that forces you to grow into it before you feel ready. Then watch how fast your potential races to catch up. You don’t need clarity before action, action creates clarity.
🎯 So… what if fear is just pointing to the next version of you?
What if that new challenge is not there to expose you as you think?
What if the only thing standing between who you are now and who you’re becoming is the decision to find out?
You don’t become **capable and then do hard things.
You do hard things and realize how capable you already are.
In the words of Ambrose Redmoon, “Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear.”
Choose courage.
With appreciation,
Huw
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Huw Edwards
Founder & CEO, h3.xyz
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