Preparing for My First Job Today

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[stag_intro]Today my official title is Project Dojo Assistant Instructor at Project Dojo Martial Arts School.[/stag_intro]

How awesome is that? I’ve always secretly wanted to learn martial arts. Not so much the fighting aspect, but the breathing techniques, the mental aspects, and all that comes as part of the training. Today, I’m going to get a first hand look at what that kind of training looks like.

Project Dojo is a 501 (c) (3) in Albuquerque, NM. It’s owner is Travis and from what I know about him via our exchanged emails, he’s extremely passionate about what he does. It’s one of the infectious kind of passions that actively excites you when they are around. I’m optimistic today is going to be an incredible day.

I’m sitting here in the RV getting ready for the day, and my mind is wondering about how to prepare for my job today. What can you do to prep for something you’ve never done before?

The one thing I keep coming back to is not to be scared.

My first real job was in college at Tyler’s Sporting Goods Store. I remember being nervous about the unknown. What if I was terrible at folding shirts? What if a girl customer asked me where to find wedges and I had no idea what she was talking about? I surely would be fired immediately.

It is natural to question these kinds of things before starting every job. We all have this fear of being fired before we even begin. The fear of not doing a good job, or letting someone down. Those are perfectly rational fears, but I believe they also can limit our potential.

Today is my first day on the job (and yes, my only day on the job). But I still have some of those fears and “first day jitters”. What if I say something dumb in front of 200 kids or get beat up by an 8 year old? They will laugh at me.

The only thing that will limit my experience today is fear. If I can beat fear then I’ll have more rich interactions with the hourly workers and people I encounter today. If you don’t beat fear before you start it gets into your head and hurts your self confidence. It tells you that you aren’t good enough and limits what you think you’re capable of. By allowing fear “in” you short change the opportunity you worked so hard to get.

Instead, the alternative is to acknowledge that fear exists. Acknowledge that it is natural to feel fear before starting something new. Embrace the fear, and allow yourself to act anyway. Empower yourself to overcome the doubts and nerves.

Today I’ll embrace fear and failure.

SENSEI

 

 

4 Responses

  • Hi Heath. We met at lunch with the Hodnetts in Albuquerque. I hope you had a great time working at Project Dojo! You left an impression on my Isaiah. He said you were really nice. As we drove up to the Dojo tonight, he wondered if you’d be here to help again. He was disappointed that you had already left. Best of luck to you and Alyssa. I hope you guys have a blast on your adventure!

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