Every once in awhile somebody does something to screw the fear and you wonder where they were brave or were they just tired of the crap? Rosa Parks is often considered a classic example. In interviews with her in later years she said she wasn’t trying to make a statement or be a symbol. She was just tired. She had worked a long day and just didn’t really care what anybody thought or what the law of the time was. I’m sure she had fear based on the climate then, but in that moment, she didn’t care. She wasn’t intending to change the world, but did any ways. There are lots of examples of this.
Many years ago when I was in college, we got to meet with some of the Iran hostages. Now, a lot of people who might’ve been born after 1980 don’t remember this little piece of history. I’m sure you can watch the movie on Netflix. In 1979, 52 Americans were held hostage in Iran for a year and a half. They were released as Ronald Reagan came into office. During that time they endured all the abuse you would expect someone enduring in a hostage scenario.
One of them recounted a story of how he was taken into a freezer, stripped, beaten, tortured, and interrogated on a regular basis. One day he basically said, “I’m tired of this. Just kill me. I’m not going to tell you anything”. His captors were rather puzzled by this and actually stopped torturing him for the rest of his time as a hostage. In that moment he didn’t care whether he lived or died. He just wanted the abuse to stop.
Everyday Scenarios
The same scenario gets played out in many less public scenarios. Often times you’ll see a story about a child who comes forward in case of sexual abuse. Many times the abuse had been going on for years and they didn’t say anything. So were they brave and coming forward or were they just tired of the crap? I don’t know that it’s an either or scenario and in many cases I think it’s one thing leading to another. They reach a tipping point where they do something that they wouldn’t have normally done. The situation became intolerable and other factors went out the window. For many women in that are victims of domestic violence, it’s fear that they won’t have food on the table when they call the police on their abusers that holds them hostage the most.
What’s Holding You Back?
Now you may not be a political hostage or the victim of domestic violence, but there’s probably something in your life that is holding you back. It may be keeping you down and because of other factors you’ve tried to maintain equilibrium by dealing with it. Chances are this is something you would want to change given the choice. And the reality is you do have a choice. Question is, are you willing to have things stay the way they are or are you going to make a change?
At what point are you either going to be brave and do what you know is right or are you simply going to get sick of the crap? The end result is generally similar. Either way, it’s just a matter of what’s going to push you over the edge. Is it going to be external factors or internal factors?
So what’s it going to be? Do you want to lose that weight? Is it time for a new relationship? Or is it time for a new job? Are you going to be brave or are you just going to be tired of the crap? Maybe you’re going to be a little of both regardless of what motivates you. The key is making that first step and screwing the fear.