In another one of those decade-old conversations that I had but don’t remember, apparently I influenced someone to go on a trip to Tahiti with his friends. This person had the financial means and the time, but for whatever reason was hesitant to make the investment to go on the trip. I talked him into it, and he has been (unbeknownst-to-me) grateful ever since.
This all came to light in a recent conversation when I listened to another of his dilemmas and unwittingly did the same thing. In response to his concerns, I pointed out the flipside: that he did have the capacity to do this and I repeated back all the reasons I had heard about why it was something he really wanted. “You know what you’re doing, right?” he said. “You’re telling me to go to Tahiti.”
All of us need friends and trusted colleagues that can push us to go to Tahiti when we’re hesitant to take a risk. Oftentimes we are personally so consumed by the fear of committing to something that we fail to take into full account the positive side of the equation. Sure, it’s scary to sign a lease, hire a staff member or book a luxury vacation, but it also might be exactly the right thing to do.
Make sure that your network includes some truth-tellers and those who will nudge you forward until you head for the islands.
