If You're Afraid To Try Something New, Read this Book Before The End of The Year
My definition of adventure is simple: Doing scary things.
Adventure is one of my core values written in bold letters and highlighted in my journal. A simple life philosophy to follow, but not easy - Not by any stretch of the imagination.
Adventure operates under the rules of fear. They are the things we do, both big and small, that live in nuance. The things that make you feel like you’re in a personal version of Alice in Wonderland – you have no idea what’s coming next because the looking glass only reveals so much.
Why is adventure important?
Because doing scary things builds a tolerance for doing scary things. It’s the only way I know how to grow.
If you value adventure as I do, here’s a book that will motivate you to try something new and jump into a challenge that scares you.
River of Doubt by Candice Millard
President Teddy Roosevelt had a strange habit.
Whenever something went wrong in his life, a tragedy, a heartbreak, a public defeat, he didn’t take a beach vacation or visit a therapist like most of us our taught. Quite the opposite. He battled with his problems with adventure.
When Teddy was 26 years old, he lost his wife and mother on the same day in the same house. On February 14th 1884, his mother’s illness took a turn for the worse and his wife died from childbirth. The only glimpse into Teddy’s mind that day comes from a journal entry—a giant X in the middle of the page and the words, “The light has gone out of my life.”
In response Teddy dropped everything and traveled to the Dakota territories where for 2 years he worked as a cattle rancher and held a local sheriff’s position before returning to New York and reentering politics.
On one occasion the strange habit nearly cost him his life.
In 1910, Teddy suffered an embarrassing public defeat. He devised a plot to win back the presidency by forming The Progressive Party. The plan backfired, and he lost the election (actually, he didn’t even come in second).
His people turned on him, which must have felt like getting banished from a primitive village: forced into wilderness, naked and alone. The tribe has spoked, “we no longer trust you and we no longer love you.”
As if on cue, Teddy sought the most physically punishing and mentally exhausting adventure he could find—The virgin descent of an unmapped river in the Amazon River Basin, appropriately called the River of Doubt.
It’s comical to think that today’s presidents are applauded for putting themselves out there with rounds of golf or bike rides, meanwhile here’s Teddy at 55 years on a piranha infested river, tracked by a tribe of cannibals, and transported by a mutinous crew.
Three people died on the expedition. One was the result of an error by Teddy’s son Kermit, which cost the life of a crew member. Two were the result of a murder plot. A frustrated and hungry crew member was caught stealing rations and shot the witness to keep him quiet.
I won’t spoil what happened to the murder, but it was shocking demise!
The River of Doubt paints a courageous image of Teddy. He was more than a boy scout desperate for attention – there was a method to his madness. When it came to courage, he didn’t just talk the talk, he made it a daily practice so when things did get scary, he would be the first to stare it dead in the eye.
Why You Should Make Adventure a Practice
Here’s the lesson I take away from Teddy’s life: You should do scary things because they scare you. End of story.
I realize that seems eccentric (even egotistical), but I value adventure because I want to be the type of person that cultivates the willpower to push through the things that scare me the most.
I think that’s what we all want, right?
That type of willpower does not happen overnight—Teddy’s life teaches us that lesson. Courage is a practice.
I’ll leave you with this story.
On his way to a campaign speech in 1912, an assassin shot Teddy in the chest with a .38-caliber revolver. Most people would have insisted on a trip to the hospital, but Teddy had practiced for this moment. He took the stage (bleeding through his shirt) and pulled out a 50-page speech that had two bullet holes blown through the pages and gave his speech.
Teddy commented on the incident: “It takes more than that to kill a bull moose.”