Changing jobs and careers, starting a new adventure in your working life or returning to work after a prolonged absence can all feel like being a trapeze artist. Taking a leap into the unknown feels risky. How can you leap into the unknown with more confidence?
Imagine you are a circus trapeze artist. You have climbed up a 30-foot ladder and find yourself standing on a very small platform holding a trapeze. Opposite is a similar platform and trapeze. You really want to get to the other side. You see hard ground in between with no safety net and all eyes are watching you. You know that to achieve your goal means holding on tight to the trapeze, jumping off and then letting go.
Do you freeze at the top of the ladder, afraid to let go and take that first step?
Do you jump off with confidence or trepidation?
For a brief moment there is nothing to hold you up other than your forward momentum until you can grab hold of the other trapeze.
Are you caught in that moment between letting go and grabbing hold of the future?
Have you caught the other trapeze but it feels unfamiliar and being comfortably on the other platform seems like a long way away?
Here are 7 ideas for leaping into the unknown with confidence:
Feel the fear and do it anyway.
Create a safety net by having the support of people you trust around you.
Manage your expectations, a mix of realism and energy.
Envision success like top sports people do and recall positive leaps you have made in the past.
Have Plan B, C and D so that you have more than one leap in mind as fall back positions.
Prepare beforehand so you are fit to leap to give you the best possible chance of success.
Imagine there is a springboard underneath that you can bounce off no matter what happens.
Close the gap between where you are now in your working life and where you want to be by setting yourself up for success when you make that leap.
