Fearlessness

Fearlessness

Swim fearlessly in the ocean of life with the power of self-confidence

Life occurs in action. Self-confidence or faith propels action. I was reading ‘Jack’ by Jack Welch and what struck me was the innate belief and courage that entrepreneurs possess to experiment, explore and create an enterprise. Business houses such a Tata, Ambani, Godrej, Birlas, General Electric, Virgin, etc. have got established due to the foresight and perseverance of a visionary who had the passion to commit his life to what they believed in. They are not necessarily equipped with prior knowledge of everything - sector, product, environment, culture, market, economy etc, yet they dare to walk unchartered territories. Their zeal to learn and adapt on the job is what keeps them ahead. Given the dynamism of the environment, successful leadership requires courage at every step to take risks, to carry people along, to deal with the swings of environment and to recreate rapidly.

One of vital keys to being a successful leader is to learn how to be a ‘part of the group’. There are no leaders, without people around them, and leaders need to be in sync with values of their group. Leadership is about being focused on ‘we’ rather than on ‘me’. Leaders get established through commitment to ‘oneness’ with the group and vision. There was a time when I believed that being independent translated to having the ability to do everything alone. This misplaced belief exerted pressure to be super-human and limited my growth as well as that of people around me. I now understand that being independent actually means having the ability to be vulnerable and seek support, where required. Accepting oneness has indeed been a liberating experience. I feel far more courageous today than I did ever before.  

In present times, there is higher focus on personal success relative to values such as relationships and love. This self-centeredness in thinking and living makes us feel isolated and gives rise to fears of ‘what will I do, how will I manage’. We forget time and again that the stronger our sense of individuality, the more we distance ourselves from each other. When we challenge the basic principle of inter-connectedness and inter-dependence, we multiply our sense of helplessness and live a marginalized life.

“As long as we believe ourselves to be even the least different from God, fear remains with us; but when we know ourselves to be One, fear goes; of what can we be afraid?” Swami Vivekananda

How can we cultivate the ability to live fearlessly with surrender and faith?

At an event I asked Maharaj Radhanath Swami of ISKCON, what is the fundamental distinction between spiritual Masters and others? He responded that Masters are like fish that swim deep in the ocean of faith, where waves of circumstances do not impact them. And other people are like fish that swim close to the surface of the water where waves of circumstances and hungry vultures are able to make prey of them easily.

I was born with the gift of faith and surrender; due to lack of awareness and appreciation of these attributes, they got diminished in the sea of experiences. Circumstances propelled me to inquire deep within and recreate. Knowledge of the Truth and living with oneness – knowledge that we are creations of nature, interconnected and designed to perform our role – has empowered me.

In my younger days, I subconsciously followed my intuition and life was synonymous to standing at the edge of a diving board, wherein I just jumped into a situation that felt right. I had this innate belief and trust in life that when I jump, either I would learn to swim and therefore, what’s the worry or if I drown, then that’s the end of worry. Strangely, the thought of turning back or injury never crossed my mind. It may sound highly simplistic and flawed but I have learnt over analysis often causes paralysis. Pat yourself on the back and renew your self-confidence by recounting and focusing on your achievements, however small. We often under-estimate or lose sight of our potential. As adults, we have to trust in our experiences, our learning, our strengths and above all, our ability to stand up again after a fall.

Building and staying established in faith requires constant focus and discipline. The way we learn any activity through repeat practice till it becomes a subconscious part of us, similarly, having faith in our inner powerhouse too requires constant focus. As creations of nature, we are gifted with inherent attributes such as happiness, courage, resilience, etc. We can use mantras, prayers, rituals, yoga as powerful tools to purify and strengthen the mind. In India, the power of prayer surrounds us at all times with the presence of temples, mosques, churches, etc.

Nature provides for everything, we simply need to open our hearts and reconnect. Although we observe nature’s movements and we know that our life is orchestrated, we still fall into the trap of emotions, anxiety or worry. Life repeatedly proves to us that we are protected; yet we are unable to accept this reality unflinchingly. We are so habituated to seeking proof that our need for conviction keeps coming in the way. We find it difficult to trust and surrender because it requires us to completely submerge our sense of individuality. The sun shines irrespective of whether we choose to open our windows or not. Open the curtains and windows of your heart to allow the sunshine to pour in and nourish it.

“Faith is a living, daring confidence in God’s grace, so sure and certain that a man could stake his life on it a thousand times.” Martin Luther King