Overcoming fears is critical in building a huge Surge business

Overcoming fears is critical in building a huge Surge business!

Extreme Adventures in Captivating Colombia

When Max & Oksana went for their 1st Wedding Anniversary to Colombia, and told me how friendly the people were, and showed me pictures of the incredible places they went…. I had to see it for myself.
I flew into Bogota, the highest capital city in the world, 8,600 feet above sea level in the Andes Mountains, 50% higher than Denver, the “Mile High City”.
But with that height comes cool weather, which doesn’t agree with me, so I flew down to Bucaramanga & hired a car to take me to San Gil, the Adventure Capital of Colombia.
En route, we stopped at the Chicamocha National Park, where you can easily spend a whole day exploring. We took a cable car that goes from a mountaintop on one side of the valley, down to the river in the canyon and up to a mountain on the other side to a place known as Mesa de Los Santos (Table of the Saints). The cable car ride is 6.3 kilometers, one of the longest cable car systems in the world. They also have an Aquapark on the side of one of the mountains with 5 gigantic pools, and all kinds of activities for both adults and children.
San Gil offers a dozen different extreme sports to those of us who want to experience adrenaline, and go outside of our comfort zones.

The first one we tried was whitewater rafting – they have a beginner adventure with level 1-3 rapids, suitable for first-timers and even children, and the ride on the Soares River with level 4 – 6 rapids, for the adrenaline junkies. The last time I went whitewater rafting, Scott Tomer fell out of the boat and was swept 2 miles down the rapids, but we kept everyone in the boat this time.
I tried rappelling for the first time – what an adventure !
But not for the faint of heart – the climb up to the top of the falls was a workout in itself – it started off as a scenic climb up some rustic stone stairs and culminated in a mad scramble up an almost vertical mud path with tree roots acting as steps and hanging onto ropes to pull yourself up to the top. After catching my breath at the top, our expert guide harnessed me up, showed me how to feed the rope through the pulley, told me to lean back in a horizontal position, put my feet on the side of the cliff, and told me to start walking my feet down the sheer rock face of a 220 foot waterfall. Oh yes, and if I couldn’t find a spot on the cliff to place my foot, to jump away from the wall until I landed further down the cliff and found footing again.

Next on my list was Paragliding – we went with a company called Paravolar Colombia up to the Chicamocha canyon. Here they use thermals to paraglide, versus the majority of flights where you jump from the top of a mountain and land at the bottom. We drove up a windy dirt road to the top of a mountain, got geared up, sweater, helmet, parachute in case of emergency (?!?), and then they harness you in and throw you off the side of the mountain. You glide in circles until you catch the thermals that take you even higher, with a spectacular 360 degree view of the canyon and surrounding mountain peaks. If they ask you if you like adrenaline, it means they’re going to spin the parasail in tight circles, so beware!

Talk about “overcoming fear” !!!
It doesn’t matter if you are scared of jumping off the side of a mountain, or lying on your back trying to maneuver down a 220 foot waterfall suspended by a thin rope, or trying to get a travel survey filled out, or inviting a prospect to see our business – we all have fears – the important thing to remember is that if you have the courage to take that leap of faith and “do it”, you get an incredible feeling of accomplishment. You feel happy. You feel like a Winner. You realize that jumping off the mountain or picking up the phone to invite a prospect wasn’t as difficult as you thought. It was the fear in your mind that was holding you back. It was a championship match – You VS Fear – and you Won !

I’m not saying it will be instant success when you overcome a fear. In fact you might not succeed the first time you overcome one. In my first kite surfing lesson in Brazil, I spent 3 hours with my instructor, overcame my fear, and then lost control of the sail and did a faceplant. It’s just like that first prospect you talk to might shoot you down, tell you “no”. But you still Won over the fear in your mind, and you
KNOW that you can try again. You possess the knowledge that you have the courage to try, and can work on getting better at it the second time.
Now I didn’t have to jump out of a plane by myself, like Coach Tomer did as a Paratrooper, I was harnessed to an expert who did the skilled work for me.

But…
I had to have the courage to make the decision to jump.
I had to have the courage to follow through with my decision & run off the edge of the cliff.
I had to listen to my pilots instructions and follow them exactly even though I was out of my “comfort zone”.
I had to tell him if I was ready to go fast or wanted him to slow down.
I had to tell my stomach to stay still when it was churning after the spins.
I had to stomp on the fear that kept rising up to my throat every time I looked down towards the earth.
I had to give up safe, solid land for the chance to soar.

And you don’t have to try to build Surge by yourself. You are attached to experts – your upline, who will help you with the skilled parts and 3-way calls.

But…
You need to have the courage to make the decision to make 2017 your Breakthrough year.
You need to have the courage to follow through with your decision and overcome any fears you have of looking foolish.
You need to listen to your TBL, RBL and Directors instructions and follow them even when you are out of your “comfort zone”.
You need to tell your mentors if you’re ready to go fast or want them to slow down.
You need to tell your stomach to stay still when it is churning because you are nervous.
You need to stomp on the fear that rises up to your throat every time it surfaces.
You need to give up the safe, solid mentality for your chance to soar with Surge.
And when you do….Talk about feeling free, swooping through the sky with the eagles for half an hour, until you glide back down to the mountaintop you started from, where you can tell everyone you know about what you did and encourage them to follow you.

Click below for a short excerpt of the 30 minute flight:

San Gil offers a plethora of other activites ~ caving, bicycling, hiking, and even strolling through the 10 acre park La Gallinera right in the center of town with the river running through it, small beaches and ancient trees covered with hanging lichens. It is a short bus or motorcycle ride to the town of Barichara, the most picturesque village in the country.

We stayed at a rustic little hotel just outside of town backing onto the river with a gorgeous pool. Harold, the owner, was an amazing cook – there was no menu, but you told him what you felt like eating and he would make up a delicious meal – pasta, steaks, chicken, salmon, sautéed vegetables, salads. And breakfast was fresh fruits, freshly squeezed natural juices, and a variety of eggs and breads.

There is a huge variety of restaurants in town, and the #1 on Trip Advisor – Gringo Mike’s didn’t disappoint, followed by a leisurely stroll through the cobblestone streets and historical buildings and balconies.

I broke my prescription glasses and was struggling to read my emails from the team. They told me to go into the “American” optical store to get them repaired. To my surprise there was a huge modern mall with designer stores, quaint ice cream & coffee shops, and even a pedestrian bridge going over the highway to the center of town. They managed to fix my glasses in 10 minutes and charged me a whopping fee of 3,000 Colombian pesos (about one dollar) for the repair!
I would definitely go back again!