“Do the thing you are afraid to do and the death of fear is certain.” Ralph Waldo Emerson
I have been afraid to do an online video course for five years and now it’s time to get over that fear because I’ve promised past workshop and after school class attendees a weekly online video follow up starting in a fortnight! Talk about giving myself a reason to get over it!
First off I need to listen to Shady and express all my repressed feelings that go with Shady’s fear. The reason this works is because the fearful thoughts and feelings are already inside my subconscious mind and one effective way to let them go is to bring them up out of my subconscious into my conscious mind and then imagine them leaving my mind and body altogether. Once I have done this I will replace Shady’s fearful thoughts with Sparky’s confident thoughts and take the action Sparky tells me to take to do the thing I am afraid to do!
This process in Sparky and Shady speak is called a Shady Short Cut or the last part of a Pit Stop. Here I’ll show you what I mean…
I hold my tall finger and ask Shady, “What’s wrong?” (Which in this specific case means, “Why are you scared to do the online video course?”)
Here is what my Shady has been saying over and over in my head both the rational and the irrational. I do not judge this, I just let it all out and I let out my feelings too…
“I’m scared I won’t get it perfect. I’m scared it will be too boring. I’m worried about trying to do an online video course for schools and an online video course for parents and I know once I start I will be overwhelmed with how many online bloody video courses I will need to do. It will be expensive to hire a producer and a cameraperson and a sound person and an editor and someone to help me put it online on a member site. I know I can’t do it by myself because I have been doing draft videos online for the school’s program for three years now and they are not good enough quality and they are boring because I can only film myself with the tripod when I am standing in the one spot. I’m worried I will forget some important bit of information and not realise until after the editing. I’m worried about when, how, where, how much. I don’t know whether I will store it on my video account or the producer will store it on his. I don’t know how much it will cost. I don’t know if I will have to pay as we go or up front or after and I’m worried about the production costs. I’m worried about using the current books as a reference as I am updating the books with new material and therefore I may confuse people by putting new info in the online course when it isn’t in the books. I’m not sure what to wear, how to look, how to do my hair – the curling thing didn’t work last time. I want to include Ranger (my dog) in the videos somehow but I’m worried about how to do that to make it look natural and not forced. I don’t know how to make the parent online course relevant for little kids (3-6), kids (6-9) and big kids (9-12). I’m concerned it will be too long if I try to include all ages in the one video. My script is too long. Do I give all the details I know or do I just give the basics?” Etc etc etc…
I have heaps more but will leave it at that because you get the point. My frustration, guilt, disappointment, fear, anger, and other repressed feelings that go with those thoughts need to all come out too. Why? Because the feelings I have repressed are inside me and stored as fearful energy. Stored fearful energy is not a good thing to have!!
Cool, consider that done!
Now I am up to asking Sparky, “What now?” (Which means, “What do I believe, think, say and do now about the online video course Sparky?”)
Sparky says, “Imagine letting the old thoughts, feelings and beliefs go and replace them with this… ‘The online video course for families is making a difference! I can show the first version to parents and kids who have already been to workshops and classes and ask for feedback and then, if necessary reshoot and tweak before I publish it and sell it online.’
Sparky also says the first action is to contact Mark (the producer, cameraman and editor I have already sorted) tomorrow with a date, time, location and offer of payment to shoot the first video next week.
Okay we have lift off! Yippee! (I just texted Mark and will call him tomorrow!)
Would you like to help too?
If you have been to an after school class or workshop before with one or more of your children (whether you paid an old price or the new price) and you would like to receive the trial online video course, one lesson at a time for nine weeks and you are happy to give me feedback… email me kathy@sparkyandshady.com and I will put you on the list to receive the videos starting in a fortnight.
If you have not been to a workshop or after school class yet and you would like to come and receive the published online video course (that will be on sale for $880) as a free follow up and ALSO receive a free one on one appointment as part of this follow up, then email or ring me to book into Term 1 After School Classes which start 4pm – 5.15pm next Tuesday for 6- 9 year olds and Wednesdays for 9-12 year olds! sparkyandshady.com/classes
Happy term 1 lovely parents! (My Jack is in Year 8 this year – whoa, that went quick, and I won’t even mention that Ashley is 25!)
Love Kathy