NEW Can Be Scary - Franco Sergi - Artist, Author, Educator
NEW Can Be Scary
by Franco Sergi
Artist, Author, Educator
#anxiety #getstarted #finish #joinin #gettingupthenerve #motion #overcomingfear @ScribblesBySergi
The scariest moment is always just before you start. -Stephen King
The unknown can be frightening. Starting something new can be paralyzing if you have something at stake, and only you can gauge the amount that's out there on the limb. It's easy to forget the anxiety new causes until it's staring you right in the face. We downplay the mental and sometimes physical symptoms of fearing failure. As kids we fear failure because of our lack of experience in life and it feels like whatever it is before us could ruin our lives forever if we fail. As adults we know this to be completely false (hindsight is wonderful). There is a flip-side to having all that aging wisdom. Adults remember the anxieties we've endured from our failing in different aspects of our lives; relationships, careers, parenting, fitness, education, saying something we wished we hadn't or something as simple as trying a daring new hair style. Maybe, after enduring all those hard knocks life can wield and accumulating a fair share of disappointments we aren't quite sure we can endure even one more failure (no matter the size). So the familiar inhibiting feelings creep up like weeds through a sidewalk when it's time to put ourselves out there in any gambit left to chance.
Many times we decline to try whatever it is everyone else seems to enjoy or avoid what we know needs to be done to ensure we bypass those uncomfortable emotions. Sometimes when looking back at my life I wonder who it was that did some of the more daring new life events. My walking across the school gym floor at my first Middle School dance to ask the popular, perfect in every way cheerleader to dance as my crew of misfit friends looked on was monumental. It took me the entire night to gain the nerve to make that walk. I waited a long time to ask because it was never the right song, she was busy talking to her friends, and my shoe wasn't tied. The lights dimmed and the DJ announced it was the last song of the night, and I somehow made myself walk over and ask her. I learned the moment she said yes that taking chances could be well worth the anxiety. The electricity of holding her hand as we made our way to an open spot on the gym floor, the feeling I got when she put her arms around my neck. I was amazed how we swayed in perfect unison. I was so close to her I could see her liberally applied bubble gum lip gloss glistening in the lights. My sense of smell was awakened by her exotic Chloe' perfume and hearing REO Speed Wagon's Keep On Loving You echoing off the bleachers and concrete walls was absolute magic. Yet, with all that positive stimuli I still have trouble doing new things if they're not in my comfort zone. I'll be honest, the walk to ask a girl to dance never got much easier no matter how many dances I danced. I was/am painfully shy when it comes to the opposite gender.
My long Middle School walk could equate to someone else's courage to start a business, or ability to instigate a conversation with an interesting person, or maybe it's asking for that well deserved raise. No matter the task before us, and the size of the reward be it big or small, the question is - how do we get ourselves started? My under appreciated mom often ordered me to put myself in motion, to start doing whatever it was I was fearful of doing (for a few seconds or a few minutes) the amount of time was mine to free style with. It's sage advice and I hear and read versions of it still today. Whatever gem of knowledge your parents, step parents or grandparents shared with you that got you to sign up for summer camp, try out for the school play or jump out of the tire swing into the lake, we need to be able to channel it whenever we need it. If we dig down deep and unearth that childhood strength it could give a much needed adrenaline shot to our daily grind no matter if you are six, sixteen or sixty. My Dad once said 8th grade to age 80 you're pretty much the same person. Being young, I assumed each decade birthday reached was a new version of you. I imagined older people forgetting what it was like to be young - it's not and they don't. I have the same likes and dislikes, same passions and same fears. He was right..again.
In my adult life things aren't usually as scary as that walk at the Middle School dance because we are more in control, have less peer pressure and may have already experienced the highest of highs and possibly the lowest of lows. Things don't often pay-off in ten fold anymore either, no matter the reason, I take less chances now. I did the whole start myself in motion for a few minutes technique a moment ago and started this blog. It was suggested as a to do by a publisher friend. I've had several uncomfortable to do items as of late, headaches and insomnia coincided with each new task.
The new for me is because I've written a trilogy, creating the story was new and tedious, but an artistic tedium that I bask in. But when the idea of putting my books and myself out there to be read and myself to be seen on line arose, I felt it...this is new. I'm an artist that loved to write as a young boy, but in my generation a comma splice, sentence fragment or run on sentence saddled me with a grade of F, that was most times etched excessively large and very red on my papers. It was as if they were teaching me the lesson, Art be damned, punctuation and grammar are all that matters. This eventually squelched my passion to write right out of me. Being friends with some exceptional, modern day Language Arts teachers I'm privy to conversations of their teaching techniques and they explained voice carries every bit as much weight as commas. Hearing that statement rekindled my literary flame and I found myself writing again. How ironic it was I despised the teachers that crushed my will to write and then decades later I adore the teachers that reignited my will to put pen to paper again. Not without some hesitation mind you, but I ended up writing six books in six years. Then, they laid in wait...
A chance meeting with a publisher set me in the direction of promoting my books through social media and the like, (it was to be another long walk across a gym floor for me) but I did it. Then it was suggested I fan out to YouTube and start a Blog. These two forms of media seemed to be the hardest for me. I pictured my mom that hasn't been alive since I've been in college bolstering my confidence and cheering me on saying, "Frankie, just put one foot in front of the other and start walking across the floor, write that blog you've been researching for so long and go make that video too, you're great." Sigh, good o'l Moms, it was sure nice having that kind of support...
My writing is rough and imperfect and is always in need of editing, but, I've been told by the in crowd this is ok, the new way. It took me a year to get up the courage to make my first YouTube video. I finally uploaded the short video. I wanted to delete it a hundred times since it's been up. After viewing the video I was painfully aware of the fact my limited handsomeness is continuing to free fall, I knew the sooner I got it out their the better. I put myself in motion...I walked into my office and seconds led to minutes and that led to completing the uncomfortable task. I think having a launch word helps, I've tried a few; Geronimo, On your mark get set go, We Dare Frankie Over, Ready or not here I come... You'll have a better one and it will help jolt you into action.
Watch my First Youtube video here then maybe share your version of the long walk across the middle school gym floor. Maybe you're still waiting to start yourself in motion. My Dad would say, "Try new things, it keeps you young". Maybe if we all start doing whatever it is we've been avoiding, we'll end up in a situation that pays off ten fold...again.
by Franco Sergi
Artist, Author, Educator
The scariest moment is always just before you start. -Stephen King
The unknown can be frightening. Starting something new can be paralyzing if you have something at stake, and only you can gauge the amount that's out there on the limb. It's easy to forget the anxiety new causes until it's staring you right in the face. We downplay the mental and sometimes physical symptoms of fearing failure. As kids we fear failure because of our lack of experience in life and it feels like whatever it is before us could ruin our lives forever if we fail. As adults we know this to be completely false (hindsight is wonderful). There is a flip-side to having all that aging wisdom. Adults remember the anxieties we've endured from our failing in different aspects of our lives; relationships, careers, parenting, fitness, education, saying something we wished we hadn't or something as simple as trying a daring new hair style. Maybe, after enduring all those hard knocks life can wield and accumulating a fair share of disappointments we aren't quite sure we can endure even one more failure (no matter the size). So the familiar inhibiting feelings creep up like weeds through a sidewalk when it's time to put ourselves out there in any gambit left to chance.
Many times we decline to try whatever it is everyone else seems to enjoy or avoid what we know needs to be done to ensure we bypass those uncomfortable emotions. Sometimes when looking back at my life I wonder who it was that did some of the more daring new life events. My walking across the school gym floor at my first Middle School dance to ask the popular, perfect in every way cheerleader to dance as my crew of misfit friends looked on was monumental. It took me the entire night to gain the nerve to make that walk. I waited a long time to ask because it was never the right song, she was busy talking to her friends, and my shoe wasn't tied. The lights dimmed and the DJ announced it was the last song of the night, and I somehow made myself walk over and ask her. I learned the moment she said yes that taking chances could be well worth the anxiety. The electricity of holding her hand as we made our way to an open spot on the gym floor, the feeling I got when she put her arms around my neck. I was amazed how we swayed in perfect unison. I was so close to her I could see her liberally applied bubble gum lip gloss glistening in the lights. My sense of smell was awakened by her exotic Chloe' perfume and hearing REO Speed Wagon's Keep On Loving You echoing off the bleachers and concrete walls was absolute magic. Yet, with all that positive stimuli I still have trouble doing new things if they're not in my comfort zone. I'll be honest, the walk to ask a girl to dance never got much easier no matter how many dances I danced. I was/am painfully shy when it comes to the opposite gender.
My long Middle School walk could equate to someone else's courage to start a business, or ability to instigate a conversation with an interesting person, or maybe it's asking for that well deserved raise. No matter the task before us, and the size of the reward be it big or small, the question is - how do we get ourselves started? My under appreciated mom often ordered me to put myself in motion, to start doing whatever it was I was fearful of doing (for a few seconds or a few minutes) the amount of time was mine to free style with. It's sage advice and I hear and read versions of it still today. Whatever gem of knowledge your parents, step parents or grandparents shared with you that got you to sign up for summer camp, try out for the school play or jump out of the tire swing into the lake, we need to be able to channel it whenever we need it. If we dig down deep and unearth that childhood strength it could give a much needed adrenaline shot to our daily grind no matter if you are six, sixteen or sixty. My Dad once said 8th grade to age 80 you're pretty much the same person. Being young, I assumed each decade birthday reached was a new version of you. I imagined older people forgetting what it was like to be young - it's not and they don't. I have the same likes and dislikes, same passions and same fears. He was right..again.
In my adult life things aren't usually as scary as that walk at the Middle School dance because we are more in control, have less peer pressure and may have already experienced the highest of highs and possibly the lowest of lows. Things don't often pay-off in ten fold anymore either, no matter the reason, I take less chances now. I did the whole start myself in motion for a few minutes technique a moment ago and started this blog. It was suggested as a to do by a publisher friend. I've had several uncomfortable to do items as of late, headaches and insomnia coincided with each new task.
The new for me is because I've written a trilogy, creating the story was new and tedious, but an artistic tedium that I bask in. But when the idea of putting my books and myself out there to be read and myself to be seen on line arose, I felt it...this is new. I'm an artist that loved to write as a young boy, but in my generation a comma splice, sentence fragment or run on sentence saddled me with a grade of F, that was most times etched excessively large and very red on my papers. It was as if they were teaching me the lesson, Art be damned, punctuation and grammar are all that matters. This eventually squelched my passion to write right out of me. Being friends with some exceptional, modern day Language Arts teachers I'm privy to conversations of their teaching techniques and they explained voice carries every bit as much weight as commas. Hearing that statement rekindled my literary flame and I found myself writing again. How ironic it was I despised the teachers that crushed my will to write and then decades later I adore the teachers that reignited my will to put pen to paper again. Not without some hesitation mind you, but I ended up writing six books in six years. Then, they laid in wait...
A chance meeting with a publisher set me in the direction of promoting my books through social media and the like, (it was to be another long walk across a gym floor for me) but I did it. Then it was suggested I fan out to YouTube and start a Blog. These two forms of media seemed to be the hardest for me. I pictured my mom that hasn't been alive since I've been in college bolstering my confidence and cheering me on saying, "Frankie, just put one foot in front of the other and start walking across the floor, write that blog you've been researching for so long and go make that video too, you're great." Sigh, good o'l Moms, it was sure nice having that kind of support...
My writing is rough and imperfect and is always in need of editing, but, I've been told by the in crowd this is ok, the new way. It took me a year to get up the courage to make my first YouTube video. I finally uploaded the short video. I wanted to delete it a hundred times since it's been up. After viewing the video I was painfully aware of the fact my limited handsomeness is continuing to free fall, I knew the sooner I got it out their the better. I put myself in motion...I walked into my office and seconds led to minutes and that led to completing the uncomfortable task. I think having a launch word helps, I've tried a few; Geronimo, On your mark get set go, We Dare Frankie Over, Ready or not here I come... You'll have a better one and it will help jolt you into action.
Watch my First Youtube video here then maybe share your version of the long walk across the middle school gym floor. Maybe you're still waiting to start yourself in motion. My Dad would say, "Try new things, it keeps you young". Maybe if we all start doing whatever it is we've been avoiding, we'll end up in a situation that pays off ten fold...again.
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