Last week we talked about Batman, The Flash, and knowing where the finish line is before you take off sprinting.  This week I want us to look at something else that could get in the way of us reaching the finish line.  That thing is FEAR.

Maybe you have heard of the Green Lantern.  Green Lantern is basically an intergalactic cop with a power ring that he uses to fight bad guys.  The ring is powered by will/grit/determination.  This ring allows him to use his imagination to create anything he needs to make to save the day.  For example, say he was surrounded by bad guys with guns.  He might create a huge shield that blocks all of their bullets.  Maybe an airplane is going to crash, so he could create a large hand to catch it.  As long as he has the will and the imagination he can virtually do anything.

All superheroes have an arch nemesis.  The Green Lantern’s vile villain is Sinestro, a Yellow Lantern (see picture).  While Green Lantern is powered by will, Yellow Lanterns like Sinestro are powered by FEAR.  The whole idea is that fear is the largest threat to someone’s will to do something.  When fear comes into play the Green Lantern loses his will, his imagination, and his power.  Green Lantern and Sinestro have clashed time and time again with Green Lantern always finding a way to overcome fear in order to beat Sinestro.

What does an intergalactic cop have to do with work?  It all comes down to your willpower versus the fear you face.  How often are we excited about a great idea that withers away because fear sets in?  How often do we allow fear to chip away at our self-confidence?  We become worried the idea won’t work.  We become worried that other people might judge us.  Before we know it, our imagination, our power, our will has been crushed by fear.  We can’t remove fear from our lives, but we can overcome it.

Challenge: How will you overcome fear, so your willpower can make your thoughts a reality?

Bonus Confessions: Things that fill me with fear on a regular basis that I have to find ways to overcome.  Maybe we share a few of these in common.

• Being a dad-> Am I doing this right?  Am I setting the girls up for success?  Do I know what I need to know?
• Being incompetent in this role-> How long do I get to play the new guy card until people just say I’m incompetent?  Am I valuable to anybody?
• Sending out my blogs-> Every week I ask myself:  Is this any good?  Is this weird that I’m sending these out?  Do people think I’m arrogant for doing this?
• Performing poetry/giving speeches-> I’m good at these things, so I shouldn’t have fear but I still do.  All the way up to the point I step on stage I worry about crashing and

burning.  Will I forget my words?  Will the audience accept something like this?  Will people listen?  Is this the right message?  Will this make me weird in people’s eyes?

Have a jolly good day,

Andrew Embry