Firewalking For Real
Dec 22, 2023
At midnight last night, I walked through fire, and I mean that in the most literal way.
There was a 12’ long lane of burning orange coals, upon which I set my bare feet and walked until I reached the other side, with thousands of people chanting Yes Yes Yes and doing the exact same thing.
Here is a video of someone who is not me, doing it. I have no video of me doing it because when you’re about to walk on fire, thinking about Instagram is dumb.
For context, I’m at Tony Robbins’ Unleash the Power Within in West Palm Beach. This is the first time they’ve done a live version of the event since Covid and while I knew firewalking was a thing and hundreds of thousands of people have done it over the decades, including Oprah, I was jumpy.
After about two hours of pretty stout mindset training, 10,000 of us walked out of the convention center into the sultry south Florida air, which was thick with woodsmoke from the 25 lanes of burning coals.
Add to the smoke, the palm trees, and the drums beating in the dark, with thousands of people milling around, it felt like West Africa, which I actually found comforting.
I’m pretty sure if you don’t come away with one or two lessons from such an event you’re probably doing it wrong. So two things:
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Firewalking is no joke.
You can totally burn yourself which is why Tony spent 90 minutes teaching us specifically how to manage our physiology and the fear, which is one of the reasons for firewalking in the first place.
“It’s the fear that will burn you,” he said. “And you can make this as easy or as hard as you want. Why not make it elegant?”
I tell my clients all the time the climb on the roller coaster is way worse than the drop. Seneca said we suffer more in imagination than reality, and standing on the grass launch pad in front of 1200-degree coals, you do really hope he’s right.
My walk was quick, focused, painless, and, if I may, elegant. Plus, I decided to let some fear, anxiety, despair, and a few other nasties burn up behind me. They didn’t make it to the other side. I did.
I like to do things that scare me, every now and again, so I can remember that fear is nearly always lying, and we are way more powerful than we think.
2. Leaders go first.
I want my clients to ignite - metaphorically of course.
So many women are trying to live the second half of their lives by the old worn-out rules and roles from their first half. Lacking direction on how to do otherwise, they waste years - settling for easy and ordinary even if it fits like a pair of too-small shoes.
As the leader of this growing tribe, I know people are watching to see if I walk the talk. People will do far more of what they see you do than anything you ever say. So that is why I’m expanding my capacity, growing, learning, reaching, and saying YES! to as many things as I can, so I can show you what a bold, imperfect, extraordinary midlife transition looks like.
You don’t have to walk on fire, move to Wyoming, start a business, or jump off platforms in the Costa Rican jungle, you have nothing to prove to anybody - except maybe to yourself.
The hard truth is, some of you are dying inside your comfort zone: Not saying things that need to be said, not investing in yourself, working jobs and relationships you’ve long outgrown, and waiting for someone’s permission to create a life that you actually love.
Aren’t you tired of that?
There is so much more and we can help you get it. Reach out and book a chat with my team here.
