If you don’t know how, learn. It’s that simple.
By Chanda Temple
Years ago, I had this friend unable to parallel park. She would drive around on downtown streets until she found a place that did not require her to parallel park.
Do you know how time consuming that was? She would pass up good parking space after parking space because those spaces were sandwiched between two cars. Crazy, right? Well, not to her. She figured that eventually her luck would turn and she would find the perfect spot.
But who has time to wait on luck? If you want to make things happen, you have to make things happen.
I felt sad that my friend let fear rule her driving world. Instead of being empowered behind the wheel, she was a victim, a “I-don’t-know-how-to-parallel-park-and-I-don’t-wanna-learn-anytime-soon” sort of victim. It was sad to watch, just like it’s sad for me to tell her story here.
But as I think about that story, I’m reminded of a powerful quote by Sara Blakely, founder of the successful Spanx undergarment and intimate apparel company. She said, “Don’t be intimidated by what you don’t know.”
Like my non-parralell-parking friend, you, too, may have let fear hold you back from doing certain things. But why? Why let fear win? Are you afraid that learning something new will show your weakness, people will laugh at you or that you will fail?
So what. Let them laugh. Let them stare. Let them point. That’s their problem, not yours.
What you have to remember is that you are taking a step forward to grow a little bit more in order to expand your territory. And once you do grow, be sure to look around to see who’s left laughing. It just may be you because you got the better end of the deal.
Chanda Temple is a veteran reporter now working in public relations. She blogs at http://www.chandatemplewrites.com. Follow her on Twitter at @chandatemple.