TLDW (too long, didn’t watch): When we’re called on to do something we haven’t done before, or something that stretches us beyond our everyday capacities, it’s an event, we have feelings about it, we experience stress. The good news is, getting through it often follows a predictable pattern. It can look something like this:

1. Step up to do the Unfamiliar Thing.

2. Feel afraid, sometimes very afraid.

3. Imagine the worst case scenario(s).

4. Try to counter any fear and catastrophizing with humor.

5. Remember you’ve done something kind of like, if not exactly like the Unfamiliar Thing before.

6. Draw on that experience now. Focus on what you know you know how to do.

7. Do the Unfamiliar Thing. 

8. Notice you’re still alive, and probably everyone else is, too. 

9. Talk about your experience with someone else. This makes it easier to remember later and your personal stories of success (however small) are helpful for the rest of us.