‘Living well is not merely choosing lightness or weightiness but holding them skillfully in tension.
Let us walk the tightrope of life with both grace and groundedness.’ — Erik Pevernagie
The mental preparation required for tightrope walking, as one might expect, entails dedicating considerable time to face the thoughts and fears that emerge, while also recognising the evident risks involved. Additionally, it is crucial to learn how to sustain a calm, grounded, and self-assured mindset during the entire experience.
Not something many of us could achieve. However, Phillipe Petit a high-wire artist, strung a 200 foot cable between the newly built Twin Towers in 1974 and then proceeded to walk across it 1,350 feet above the ground for 45 minutes. So the question is, ‘How did Petit manage the overwhelming fear of falling during his eight passes from one tower to another? and how can we confront the constant fears we face in our daily life?
His advice:
1. Give yourself a time limit.
Often our thoughts and fears can consume our time and energy and before we know it, a whole day can pass absorbing information that is not based on any truth.
When we feel overwhelmed, we literally need to STOP, reset, and take action to disrupt the flow of fear. Turn off the news, stop scrolling, and create time in nature to breathe, realign, and calm your energy and mind.
2. Exaggerate your Fear
Sounds counter productive, I know, but it works. Petit believes, the more delirious your expectation, the safer you will be when you see that reality is much less horrifying than what you had envisioned. Most of the time, however, we tend to flee from our fears, often resorting to distraction, addiction, or attempts to control our circumstances.
So what occurs when we face these fears, confront them, and permit their presence? Well, it provides our mind with an entirely new perspective on our situation, revealing that what we believed was fated for disaster can actually be addressed in a calm and grounded manner.
Confronting and experiencing our fears is an ongoing endeavour throughout life; however, the more we engage in this practice, the more we will uncover our boundless resilience, clarity, and inner wisdom.
LIVING IN THIS MOMENT 
it takes practice and is a mind game for sure
I agree Beth. It takes patience and focus to conquer our fears and thoughts. Thank you 🙏🏻🧡
Really great wisdom and advice, Karen. I’ve been trying to practice this when I feel overwhelmed. Thank you for this post.
So good to hear this Michele. We all have fears and we all have an opportunity to free ourselves from their hold over us. Thank you
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Imagination can be a blessing or a curse. It must be harnessed for good. 🙂
Absolutely Eliza. So true. 💜🙏🏻🧡
Some days I use to do that just walking down the footpath Karen. Thankfully they are days gone by. But that does seem a good thing to raise our fears beyond hope, then realise they are anything but…and conquer them all. Great post kind lady, may we never have to do our housework on a tightrope…though…some days the juggling feels like it 🤣❤️🙏
Our mind is very powerful and crazy at times I agree! But we all have the capacity to move in a new direction regardless of our outer circumstances or housework!
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Indeed kind lady, may it be so 🤗❤️🙏
Such a refreshing insight to handle fear. It’s a part of life, so let’s be prepared. 💐🙏🏻💖
Absolutely Val so true! Well said. 🧡🙏🏻💜
Once again, Karen, such timeless advice, and I love the opening quote: Let us walk the tightrope of life with both grace and groundedness.’ In this topsy-turvy world, every now and then we need to take a deep breath, ground ourselves and then this “tight rope” feeling is reduced. Wishing you a beautiful weekend 🌷
With so much uncertainty in the world right now, staying grounded and clear is exactly how we can move through our fears. Thank you Randall. Wishing you a grounded and graceful weekend. 🌿🧡🙏🏻🌿