Susan’s Fear Truth #4 tells us that we are not alone in our fear and that everyone feels fear when they try something knew. In Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway, she uses the example of New York City mayor Ed Koch—an attorney, political commentator, TV personality, and a lifelong politician. In the 1980s, when he had to learn a tap-dance routine to perform with a cast from a Broadway show for a charity event, he claimed to be scared to death. Of course he was, tap dancing was an activity that tested him in a new way. We all face fear when we try something new.
Most of us likely don’t remember much about Ed Koch, but nearly all of us will know who Shonda Rhimes is. She is the creator and producer of the long-running show, Grey’s Anatomy, the political soap opera, Scandal, the super popular, Bridgerton, and so many other shows and movies. You would think someone so successful wouldn’t have anything left to fear. But she did. As an introvert, she hated being in front of an audience, at press junkets, or giving talks. She said ‘no’ to every invitation she received, never putting herself outside her comfort zone.
Then she decided to say ‘yes’ to everything for a year (Susan would have LOVED that!) and found that by being open to new things, she changed her life considerably. She even wrote a book about it!
If Shonda Rhimes feels the fear, how can we possibly expect that we would not? Whether super successful and famous or living a more quiet life, we all feel fear. We are not alone in our fears.