Chris
Hadfield went blind in space, but he still found a way
to
complete his mission. These are his takeaways.
If
you’re going to work in an environment like outer space, you must
be able to look fear in the eye and plan for any scenario. No one
knows this better than Chris
Hadfield,
the first Canadian astronaut to command the International Space
Station. He was awarded the NASA Exceptional Service Medal for his
work.
Out
of Hadfield’s many fascinating experiences in outer space, going
blind during his first spacewalk
is by far the most well known. While floating 254 miles above the
Earth’s surface, his suit became contaminated, blinding him
temporarily. He was able to regain his sight and even complete his
mission by utilizing his training and confronting his fear.
Recently,
Hadfield sat down with The
Science of Success
to share the biggest takeaways from his astronaut training and
experiences in space. If you are trying to overcome your own fears,
these tactics and mental frameworks will help you crush any goal on
Earth or in space.
1. Knowledge is power
Oftentimes, fear stems simply
from a lack of knowledge. “Things aren’t scary; people are just
scared, and that’s a fundamental difference,” Hadfield says.
While some things in life definitely warrant our fear, many of the
common things people are afraid of are completely harmless.
Take
spiders for example. “A lot of people are afraid of spiders,” he
says. “Of course, most spiders are fine. If you have no
understanding of spiders at all, you treat each one you see like the
most venomous spider that exists. Rather than spending your life
screaming and running, why not do the research and find out how
many spiders are dangerous
where you live? For a lot of places in the world, you’ll find the
answer is none.”
If we take interest in the
things we fear and try to understand them, we can gauge how rational
our fear truly is. Once we have an understanding, we can create a
plan to overcome those fears, or decide it’s something we should
avoid.
2. Visualize failure
It’s
a common practice to visualize success. Imagine yourself conquering
any obstacle and coming out a winner. At NASA, however, doing just
the opposite is often what keeps everyone alive and leads to a
successful mission.
“Visualizing
failure
will serve you well,” Hadfield says. “We practiced over 10,000
different things going wrong. What
is the most likely thing to go wrong, and am I ready to face it, and
how do I know? Let’s
practice that thing going wrong and see if I can deal with it.” By
visualizing and planning for every possible variable that would lead
to failure,
you’re also helping ensure success.
As
Hadfield likes to say, “There’s no situation in space that’s so
bad you can’t make it worse.” So next time you’re planning a
project or task, think of what
could go wrong
and plan for it. This will keep you be clear headed, rational and
able to make the right call even in the worst of circumstances.
3. Don’t exaggerate
Always
tell it like it is. Not only to those around you, but to yourself as
well. “Everybody wants to feel significant. One of the ways to
increase your own significance is to exaggerate
accomplishments
or problems that exist,” Hadfield says.
When we exaggerate, we feel good
about what we have accomplished or what we have overcome. A side
effect you may not intend is that you shift the perception of the
obstacle or triumph in the eyes of everyone listening. If you play up
how difficult a certain task was, you may cause others to plan
incorrectly or focus on the wrong things, which can lead to disaster.
4. Aim to be a zero
When
you’ve achieved a certain level of success, you begin to build up
confidence
in yourself.
Confidence can be a great asset and open a lot of doors, but you can
never assume that you’re always going to be right or add value.
Sometimes, it’s best to sit back and learn more before pushing your
opinion.
“When I was younger, I always
called myself a plus one,” Hadfield says. “I thought no matter
what I did, I’d come in as a positive influence.” The problem is
that oftentimes in work and life, scenarios are more complicated than
we initially think. If you let your ego come into play and assume
your influence is always the deciding factor, you not only come off
poorly to other group members, but may end up having a negative
impact on the project.
“I
try to be more realistic in my own abilities. I try to come into a
new situation deliberately saying I’m going to aim to be a zero
here,” he says. “I’m going to give myself time to notice what’s
actually happening, to become informed, and be more selective and
deliberate in how I am going to try to be a positive influence.” By
using Hadfield’s method of being a zero and suppressing
your ego,
you can come into any situation and add value.
While you may never find
yourself blind in outer space, these tactics will help you overcome
fear of the unknown and be successful in anything you do.
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