When I was a lawyer, I was successful. I was making good money. On the outside, it looked like I had it made.

But on the inside, I was miserable. The work didn’t light me up. It drained me. I remember sitting in my office one night long after everyone else had gone home, looking out over the city, and thinking, Is this it? Is this what I’m going to do for the rest of my life?

I had a vision for something different. I wanted to create a coaching practice. To help people live more intentional, fulfilling lives. But the chasm between where I was and where I wanted to be felt terrifying. Too vast to cross.

So, I stayed stuck. For years.

Looking back, I see it clearly now. It wasn’t the lack of opportunity that held me back. It wasn’t the market, the timing, or my obligations. It was fear. Pure and simple.

Fear of failure.

Fear of what others would think.

Fear of losing what I had, even if what I had was slowly killing me inside.

The truth is, fear is one of the most powerful forces in the world. It can keep us trapped in jobs we hate, in relationships that don’t serve us, and in stories that no longer fit who we’re becoming.

And right now, there’s a lot of fear in the air. Cultural fear. Political fear. Financial fear. The world feels uncertain. And when fear is in the air, paralysis follows. People stop creating. They stop imagining what might be possible. They hunker down and play small.

That’s what fear does. It convinces us to trade our dreams for safety.

Susan Jeffers wrote a wonderful book years ago called Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway. The premise is simple. Fear never really goes away. Waiting for fear to disappear before we take action is like waiting for the wind to stop before setting sail. It’s not going to happen.

The only way to move forward is to do it scared.

Those three words, “do it scared,” have become a mantra for me and for so many of my clients.

When a client tells me they’re stuck, one of my favorite questions to ask is, “What would you do if you weren’t afraid?” It’s amazing how that one question can open the door to possibility. You can see the light flicker on in their eyes. The energy shifts. They start to imagine a different story.

Because when we set fear aside, even for a moment, we remember that we have power. We remember that the only way forward is through.

Here’s what I’ve learned: courage isn’t the absence of fear. It’s action in the presence of fear. Every meaningful thing you’ve ever done, you’ve done while afraid. The first day of school. The first big presentation. The first time you said, I love you.

You didn’t wait until you weren’t afraid. You just did it anyway.

If you find yourself feeling stuck right now – unsure of what comes next, overwhelmed by the noise of the world – try this:

Take a few quiet minutes today. Close your eyes. Breathe. Ask yourself, What would I do if I weren’t afraid?

Then listen.

The answer might surprise you. It might be small—an email to send, a phone call to make, a boundary to set. Or it might be big—a business to start, a move to make, a new chapter to begin. Whatever it is, take one small step toward it.

Don’t wait for the fear to go away. It won’t. But it will shrink with each step you take. Because action dissolves fear.

That’s how we grow. That’s how we create lives that matter.

If I had waited until I wasn’t afraid to leave law and begin coaching, I’d still be in that office, looking out over the city lights, wondering what could have been.

Don’t let that be your story.

Do it scared. Feel the fear and move forward anyway.

When you’re not afraid, the world opens up. And you realize it was never as big a leap as you thought.

Need help? Let’s talk. Email me: [email protected]