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"The Courage to shake hands with tomorrow"

Dr Kobus Neething

Chapter 11

The courage to risk

I believe that we were born to take risks - in the behaviour of the young child we see many spontaneous indications of natural risk-taking. All the child is asking for is for the parent, and later the teacher to take his hand in this endeavour to go beyond and break the boundaries of his immediate world. But unfortunately so often, instead of developing this essential quality to take risks, the reverse happens. By forcing a child to adhere to the con-fines imposed by existing cultures and systems, that same child, with the natural instinct to expand, starts to avoid taking risks completely.

Maybe in years gone by it was still possible to journey to your point B without taking risks - but in the nineties and beyond we will have to rediscover our courage to take risks. Without such courage there is no point B.

Does this mean that people who apparently resist change and refuse to undertake any risk to cross a new frontier in the modern environment? Are they obsolete and stupid? The answer is no. Many of those people had learned well and achieved well in the paradigms of the eighties and earlier. But now they have uncomfortable feelings about the future and hang on to past behaviour. They are suspicious of new behaviour that go beyond their experience.

IS IT SAFE OUT THERE? NO, IT WILL NEVER BE COMPLETELY SAFE OUT THERE ANY MORE. HOW-EVER, STANDING STILL AND LOOKING BACK WILL LEAD TO ONGOING FRUSTRATION, ANGER, CONFLICT AND DISILLUSION. NOT TO RISK IS TO SUFFER THE INCALCULABLE LOSS OF WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN.

Activity

Do the following mind exercise. To visualise, lie or sit in a comfortable position and close your eyes. Relax your whole body by first tightening the muscles of each part of your body and then relaxing it. When you feel completely relaxed, start visualising the following:

You are standing a small distance from the edge of a cliff. Right at the edge of the cliff, somebody with courage, somebody you admire is standing. The person is waving and calling to you to move closer to the edge. You can not move and feel paralysed by a fear of the sheer drop you know lies ahead. The person up ahead does not take no for an answer and keeps urging you to come forward. Feel the fear, the tightening of your chest, the chills running down your spine. You can not move, you do not want to move.

Suddenly, instead of looking down and knowing the sheer drop is waiting for you, you lift your eyes up towards the sky. You start noticing the bright blue, the shimmering gold of the sun, the soft whiteness of the clouds. Feel the fear starting to leave your body. Feel in its place, an excitement growing inside you. You feel the tingling of expectation, of hope. You start feeling bold, in control. Slowly you walk forward until you are standing at the very edge of the cliff. You still feel the excitement building up, something good is going to happen. Suddenly you feel the person with you at the edge pushing you over the edge. You feel your stomach lurch, but then you are overcome by the most wonderful sensation you have ever experienced - you are flying! Feel the wonder, the freedom, the overwhelming joy.

 

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