74. Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway: Unlocking Your Next Level of Growth with Hazel Brown

What if fear was not the villain in your story, but the hero? Join me, Hazel Brown, as we explore this bold concept in "The Fearless Pursuit of Growth." Drawing from my own experiences, I share how embracing fear can lead to transformative personal growth. From launching this podcast amidst doubt to making life-altering choices, I've discovered that fear is the signal that we're on the brink of something great. Together, we'll examine how stepping out of comfort zones aligns with self-respect and propels us toward our highest potential. It's time to take that first small, courageous step toward your dreams, knowing each stride fuels profound change and self-discovery.

As we journey together, let's also focus on boosting our community's visibility and growth. I invite you to become an integral part of our podcast family by subscribing, rating, and reviewing our episodes. Your engagement is crucial not only to our growth but also to your own journey of resilience and self-betterment. Let's keep betting on ourselves, absorb the empowering insights we share, and continue to grow and glow. Visit itsthehumanexperience.com to stay connected, and anticipate more inspiring stories and discussions that await in our next episode.

Fear isn’t here to stop you; it’s here to signal that you’re on the edge of something transformative. Instead of saying, ‘I’m scared, so I’ll stop,’ try saying, ‘I’m scared, so this must mean I’m growing.’ Lean into that feeling—it’s where the magic happens."

"There’s no such thing as the perfect moment to start. Waiting for all the stars to align is just fear in disguise. Your job is to take the first step, even if it’s small, and let the momentum build. Remember, confidence doesn’t come before action—it comes after."

Fear often grows when we sit still. The cure? Action. 

Overcoming fear
Personal growth podcast
Building self-worth
Fear and confidence
Motivation for goal-setting

Chapters

• 0:00 The Fearless Pursuit of Growth
• 15:53 Boosting Podcast Visibility and Growth

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Welcome to. It's the Human Experience Podcast Hosted by Hazel Brown, a healthcare leader, wife, mom and career coach. If you're big on authenticity, personal development, perseverance and transparency, you're in the right place. Get ready to be uplifted, inspired and empowered as you become fearless in pursuit of the life you desire and deserve. Our goal is to help you level up by creating a safe space to learn and reflect, while listening to transparent stories from our host or successful professionals and business owners who've agreed to share the parts of success that typically gets X'd out on social media, because that's the part you need to see and hear the process. Go ahead and subscribe. You don't want to miss out on these transparent stories and discussions that reveal highs, lows, aha moments and nuggets that'll help you to grow and glow.

Speaker 2: 1:13

You are now tuned in to the it's the Human Experience podcast. I'm your host, hazel Brown. Welcome to the podcast. This is a podcast where we're going to explore the heart of personal growth, self-worth and living a true life that's aligned with your purpose. If you've been looking for a sign to step into the next version of yourself, this is it. This is the sign. Now let's go ahead and dive into the episode.

Speaker 2: 1:41

I want to start by asking you one question when was the last time you felt afraid? I'm not talking about like spiders, because Lord knows I've seen my share of just big spiders. Listen, I'm not talking about being scared in a scary movie. I mean that fear that creeps up on you when you're thinking about doing something new, betting on yourself, getting to the next level, applying for that dream job, starting your own business, making a big life. Change that fear. That's a sign that you're on the edge of growth. That's a sign that you're headed in the right direction. That's a sign that you're headed in the right direction. That is a sign that you are going to be stretched, and I just really want to talk about it because, listen, fear is not your enemy. It's really proof that you're pushing your boundaries, out of your comfort zone and guess what? Everything you want. You hear it all the time. It's on the other side of fear. So I want to unpack that together.

Speaker 2: 2:51

What I've learned is our brain really is wired to keep us safe, but safety really doesn't allow us to transform. It really doesn't help us become the highest version of ourselves. It's so important that we understand that getting to the next level or the highest version of ourselves truly is not a destination. I saw something recently that I'm going to paraphrase. That spoke about how becoming your highest self is every time you make a decision that is aligned with the highest version of yourself. So every time you choose you, every time that you honor self-respect, every time you go after the thing, regardless if you're fearful, that is honoring your highest self, and I just wanted to make sure that I shared that with you because it really resonated and it was really necessary when I saw it, and I don't wanna keep the gems to myself.

Speaker 2: 3:52

I wanna share them with you too, but just know that safety is not where transformation happens, and I want you to take a moment to really think about a time where fear was in your thoughts and you were safeguarding your next step, like a guard at a gate. Essentially, that treasure is your potential, your dreams, your next level, and you owe it to yourself to open that gate. You open that gate and see what happens. You walk down the path even though there's unknown, even though it's possible it might not work out, even though it's not easy, because you're gonna learn something in the process. I know it feels uncomfortable. Believe me, I've been there. I'm probably there right now. I'm actually in a stretching season as I record this episode.

Speaker 2: 4:52

When I started, this podcast, I literally doubted whether or not it was something I should do. What if no one listens? What if I fail? What if I'm like the statistics where they say that after five episodes most people stop all the things? But I decided to feel the fear and take a leap anyways. And here we are, 70 plus episodes later well over my initial goals in terms of downloads. Don't get me wrong. My long-term goals are probably 100,000 downloads per episode per week and all the things. But we're going to get there.

Speaker 2: 5:33

The thing is, your dreams don't wait for that perfect moment. They wait for you to decide to go after the goal. They wait for you to take the action. They wait for you to bet on yourself and believe in yourself, to take the action. They wait for you to bet on yourself and believe in yourself. And here's what I want you to do Take one small step, one scary step, like today, as soon as you're done listening to the episode Maybe it's emailing someone about something you wanted to ask and see if it works out in your favor. Booking a class to learn something new, saying yes to yourself for once and not putting everyone else before you. Applying for that job, starting that business, writing that business plan, writing real goals for yourself, to where you're not capping your potential in terms of creating your glass ceiling for yourself. And then, within that, I want you to remember that every step is going to build that momentum, those small wins. They add up to massive change. I share that and I'm going to share a little bit more open in how I share, because even in moving to another state, I knew there was a calling over my life to move here. I knew this was where I needed to be.

Speaker 2: 6:56

In the process I have not loved the move, let's talk about that. I have not loved it. I've had moments where I've wanted to move back. I've had moments where I'm like God, moments where I've wanted to move back. I've had moments where I'm like God, why me? What are you doing? I was fine where I was. I continue to have those moments because I'm human, right, and so you're human.

Speaker 2: 7:16

So you're going to have moments that, even when you make decisions that you know are aligned to your higher self and what it is that you're trying to do, you're going to question if you're on the right path, not necessarily because of fear, but because it doesn't feel comfortable, it doesn't feel good. It doesn't feel safe. It's not what comes with ease. Your stretch won't always come with ease. Your stretch will come with the ripple effect. It's going to come with the fact that in that stretch you have a learning curve. You have to get to know the things, the people, the how, the why, all the things right. You have to be able to fully understand your next level and since you're just getting to your next level, you won't know all the things. So there is definitely a level of uncertainty that comes within that space and trying to figure out what, within the next process of your journey, you are going to accomplish, who you're going to become, what's going to really happen in terms of the realms and experiences that will occur in this new level. But you have to trust the process. You have to let it unfold in front of you by taking one small step and understanding that those small steps really do add up.

Speaker 2: 8:41

Let me tell you a quick story about someone who inspires me, my mom. Even though she's not here anymore, and if you listen to episode two from the podcast, you already know that when she came to the US from Jamaica, she had nothing but determination and faith. She could have let fear of the unknown stop her, but instead she pushed through. She built a life for her kids. She showed us the power of resilience and I know you have people like that in your family that, in spite of her kids, she showed us the power of resilience, and I know you have people like that in your family that, in spite of their circumstances, they still continue to bet on themselves. Though they were single moms, single fathers, didn't have all of the silver spoons and all the handouts that they would have loved to actually have, they still persevered and made it through. And that courage teaches you that fear is temporary but regret lasts forever. How many people do you know that you hear them say they wish they would have?

Speaker 2: 9:38

Don't be a starter, be a finisher. I want you to know that you can start betting on yourself any day of the week, but if you fold because the going gets rough, you won't get to see how great it could get. You won't get to see how strong you are. You won't get to see what's on the other side of that potential. So let's not just unlock the potential, but let's keep going. I don't want you to look back at your life wondering what if I would have tried. I want you to try and see what happens, because you tried what happens, what you learn and who you become as a result of you having that self-respect to honor your highest self and choose you every single time. So we can go back. What's one thing you can do today, even if you're scared? I want you to write it down, make it real and bingo, take action. I want you to take action. I want you to figure out what your real goals are. I'm going to circle back to that.

Speaker 2: 10:45

Recently, I decided to write down my goals, make them clear and make them big and then, from that, take action. For me, I've always said I wanted to make a lot of impact on the lives of others. Guess what. I'm doing that with the podcast, with my events, with what I do in my nine to five, with the way that I show up in the world, just being my authentic self. I am doing that. But now I realize that I'm playing small. I want to make millions. I want to be able to live the life that I'm deserving of. But let's be real.

Speaker 2: 11:21

Many of us have been brainwashed and programmed into thinking that wanting more money comes across as being greedy or being materialistic or just really being vain, and everyone won't agree with me, but I'm just gonna let you know where I am in my life. I'm a yes for abundance. I'm a yes for showing up for myself and living a life where I feel that I am free to do whatever it is I want to do, help whoever it is that I want to help in, however God calls me to do it, and within that, I have to make decisions about how I take action and how clear I get in the work that I do in order to be able to actualize those goals, not just by taking action, but simply stating what it is you truly want. So I'll share 3.0.

Speaker 2: 12:13

Hazel no longer just wants to make impact. She wants to make impact and she wants to create generational wealth for herself, for her children, for her children's, children's children, and make an impact on many lives all across the world. That is what I currently want and that can change two, three years from now, but I share that to say openly that now I have to take action and do the work for the things it is that I need to do in order to actualize that reality for myself. I really try to share as openly as possible, because I want you to know that when you ask and take action, create a plan, get out your way and do the work, you can live the life that you're deserving of living. But sometimes we don't ask for enough, sometimes we don't really ask for exactly what we want, because we still tend to dim our light, even when we think we're not dimming our light. I thought I just wanted to make impact Child, I do and I have people in terms of sharing what an impact I've made on their lives and things that they've been able to do this year alone, last year, and how beautiful their lives have turned around because they put themselves first.

Speaker 2: 13:40

Now they understand they're deserving and they're able to see the fruits of making sure that they take action and bet on themselves and believe in themselves. I am so thankful for every listener. I am so thankful for everyone whose lives I've touched. Definitely, be sure to share the podcast with all your besties. Everyone you know that's currently working on betting on their self and becoming the person that they know they're deserving of becoming. I wanna leave you with this. Every person you admire started somewhere. They felt fear, they doubted themselves, but they didn't let it stop them, and neither should you.

Speaker 2: 14:24

If this episode resonated with you, I just really want you to share it with a friend who just needs a little push to take that leap. Know that there are other episodes. If you're looking for an episode to really lift you up and pour into your heart, I'm going to give you some options. Episode five is all about embracing the journey to self-worth, navigating self-doubt, finding confidence, discovering yourself. Episode 12 is all about the art of letting go, how to release what's holding you back from your dream life. 11 is good too. Episode 15 is about the power of small steps, how to really build big dreams with consistency. Episode 4 talks about Maslow's hierarchy of needs. There's 44. I'm opening up about self-worth and confidence and what I had to do to get to the place where I just know who I am. There are just so many episodes, guys.

Speaker 2: 15:20

The podcast was actually ranked number 63 out of top 100 podcasts for 2024 on Feedspot, and I just really want to take a moment to say thank you, because without you that would not be possible. And I want, really want to take a moment to say thank you, because without you that would not be possible, and I want to continue growing the podcast, making an impact on more lives, making sure more people see that they can absolutely do it. I want you to keep going and knowing that you can absolutely do it. Leave us a review. Scroll down to the bottom if you're listening from Apple or even if you're listening from Audible. It gives you those options to write a review. Write a review for me. Rate the podcast five stars. That really helps us to get in front of more people. Just keep betting on you.

Speaker 1: 16:04

We hope you caught all those gems. So here for all of it. Be sure to subscribe so that you don't miss a gem. Write a review so that we know to keep bringing you episodes like this. And check us out online at itsthehumanexperiencecom to keep up with us. Keep growing and glowing. Catch you on the next episode.