Have you ever experienced a moment when you realised there was a very real chance you could get seriously injured or die?
Off the top I can think of three in my life so far.
While that may sound horrible, the thing is that once you accept that it’s out of your control, you kinda love it.
A couple of years ago I was living the dream, backpacking Europe with 2 of my best friends. It just so happened that we were in Spain in the middle of July, and there’s only one true calling for young males in Spain in the middle of July. San Fermin… or the running of the bulls.
We arrived in the evening, missing the daily bull run in the morning- but not the Sangria and San Miguel fuelled parties that crowded the streets every night.
Enter Fabrice.
Fabrice is a wild spirit. He’d been travelling, surfing, getting tattoos of flying sharks… A genuinely awesome guy, who in the words of Rod Kimble “liked to party”. He was also the one to convince 3 drunk Australians that they “HAD to run tomorrow! It’s an adrenaline rush man! You will love it!” (In a strong French Canadian accent).
We agreed. Social pressure and sangria will wear down even the wariest of travellers…which we were not.
Like all good athletes we knew the necessity of adequate rest so that night – or rather, that morning - we crashed in a park for a couple of hours to prepare.
BOOOM!! A cannon fired and I was stirred from my still slightly drunken, semi conscious state.
There I was. In a crowd of people, atmosphere buzzing, staring down a long cobbled street waiting for possible death to thunder around the corner.
Yep, see in the middle of that crowd about 20 up in the middle? That's me... maybe
It’s a waiting game, but not the kind I’m used to. Unlike back home at a restaurant where I’m waiting to to impale my steak with a fork, I’m waiting to see the beasts that may impale my own voluptuous rump with their horn.
A sea of other reckless locals and travellers start doing the salmon dance: jumping up and down to catch a glimpse of the bulls. This continues for a minute or two before you hear the buzz of the crowds lining the buildings, railings, light posts and balconies get louder.
Then you see it: a herd of 500 kg monsters round the corner with a frenzied rush of white and red splitting before them.
Yep, this bull even lifts.
I landed from my final salmon jump and forget everything but my own survival.
TOP TIP: If you’re looking for a hangover cure, adrenaline will do it.
I forgot my friends, I forgot those around me, all I cared about was running and avoiding the bulls that were rapidly closing the distance.
20 metres, 10, 5, I threw myself to the left smashing myself and any poor soul on the left of me into the wooden barricades. The pack thundered past and I apologised to the old Italian man I’d just given a first hand experience of what it felt like to be the Bolognese of his Nona’s lasagne, sandwiched between a sweaty white man whose clothes were stained with Sangria and the not-so-pillowy embrace of a wooden barricade. Mmmm lasagne…
Wait… So you didn’t get gored in the ass?
Well I was gently grazed… in the arena…by a baby bull…whose horns had been blunted.
But here’s what this experience taught me.
Planning and preparation can be great. We’ve all heard the saying “failing to plan is planning to fail”. But this isn’t the only side of the equation. There are times when planning, analysing and preparation will hinder you.
It prevents or delays taking action.
There are times when we need to TAKE FAST, IMPERFECT ACTION.
Times you just have to throw yourself in and adjust.
Paralysis by analysis is a real thing and I see it in so many clients and friends. They put off actually doing anything by convincing themselves that they need to plan more, read more or get more peoples opinions.
I still find myself overthinking and analysing every little detail of things that I’m unsure of or afraid to do, trying to ensure it’s perfect or that I have everything covered before starting. All this does is slow me down and creates new barriers, either physically or psychologically that hadn’t been there at the start.
Had I decided to watch the bull run before actually participating there was a 95% chance I would have convinced myself that I would get trampled, gored, knocked flying into the air, be crushed against the wall at dead-mans corner (yes there’s actually a corner called that …). The point being, I would have talked myself out of it. I would have missed one of the best experiences of my life. It is a moment that has stuck with me, that has changed me, and that I will never forget.
Sometimes it’s easier to sprint out of your comfort zone then sit there weighing up all the pros and cons and planning out every step because usually the barrier gets thicker and harder to break through the longer you leave it.
Whether it’s getting back to the gym, finally committing to a new diet, spending some money to invest in a coach or mentor to fast track your results, at some point you need to jump in. Absolutely do some research but don’t get caught up in it.
Take action. Time is a precious commodity; after a certain point you’ll learn more from doing then from reading while building self-confidence at the same time.
Yes, it can be scary, but just like everything else in life, taking action is a skill. A skill that gets better the more you do it. In fact, actively seeking things that make you uncomfortable can be a great way to improve in that particular area because usually it’s the things we least want to do that are the most beneficial to us.