Leap of Faith

Faith is an often misunderstood concept.  When people hear the word faith, they tend to think of religions where an individual believes in a supreme being of some sort.  However, people do themselves a great disservice by thinking that faith is only religious.  Faith in one’s self is perhaps the most significant asset any individual can attain in life.  As children, we were full of faith; a child has faith that when an adult puts their hands out and says, come over here,” they can walk to them. 

Some may argue that this is not faith in themselves but in the one who held their hands out and said, walk over here.  But the child must have faith that one, I really can do that, and two, when I fall, I can get back up and keep going.  But somewhere along the path of life, we have new experiences such as I want to fly using my arms, but soon learn oh I can’t do that.  You slowly start focusing on the cants, and somehow those cants, without us realizing, turn into wonts.  I won’t try to start a business because I’m too old, I don’t know enough, or I don’t have time. We may say I don’t have the time or energy to get a doctorate degree, and the excuses go on and on.

We can have a fantastic idea, but our brain, which wants to protect us from wasting our time and from hurt, says, you can’t do that, and then it’s easy for the individual to say I won’t do that.  Yet why can some people create successful businesses, and some cannot? Those we call successful know failure very well or may not consider themselves successful.  Just as a child learning to walk falls many times before finding success.  All successful people fail a few times.

The primary factor separating those who keep trying and those who do not is that they have faith in themselves.  In the movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, there is a scene where Indiana Jones must walk over a vast chasm, and the clue says he must make a leap of faith. He begins to take that step, then pulls back and throws a handful of dirt out, revealing the narrow walkway which couldn’t be seen from his view.

Taking that leap of faith was frightening, just as changing our lives or chasing after some challenging goal is scary.  But the key to being successful in getting the thing we want is faith.  We must have faith in ourselves that we can achieve what some might say is impossible. It may seem that it is beyond us but just as a child reaches out to hands waiting to catch them, and Indiana Jones threw dirt over the path he was to walk on, no one has to take that leap of faith without some help.  When it comes to making significant changes or achieving challenging goals in your life, a Life Coach can be there to outstretch their hand and say, don’t worry, I’ve been there; I can help you. A Life Coach will not push you to do something you’re incapable of doing.  A Life Coach will not shove you over an empty chasm.

How do I know that faith in ourselves is the most powerful force we can muster to help us achieve what we once thought was hard or impossible?  I know because I’ve been there.  I’ve had to work and struggle alone my whole life because I did not realize there were life coaches out there who could help me.  I overcame some seemingly impossible challenges, and after much work, I was able to get a Ph.D. in psychology.  With this degree and my experiences of overcoming challenges and having complete faith in myself, I can help any struggling to meet their challenges. 

I would be happy to answer any questions that people may have about this article.

Ryan J. Russell PhD