I was reading the new edition of Jack Trout’s “Repositioning: Marketing in an Era of Competition, Change and Crisis” and a passage that I have seen in many of his many books reminded me of what I wrote about in a previous post on fears and how to face and foil them.
Jack Trout basically writes that “behavioural scientists say that there are five forms of perceived risk: monetary, functional, physical, social and psychological.” (page 16-17).
In my case, there are risks of running out of money during the trip or not having enough money to embark on the big journey in the first place. The functional risks are that I may not get Visas (in my case I suspect that I will need an artist visa and not your average tourist visa), that the car would break down and so on.
While I can't wait to travel through deserts, I am particularly hopeful that I will never run out of fuel in such a remote place! I could be in a little bit of trouble!*
The physical risks are very straight forward: I may be injured or face death in car accident or I may contract some serious disease somewhere as a result of drinking tap water (a habit I will apparently have to lose pretty fast!).
Socially of course, the risk is to look like a clown if within a few months, I am back home because the trip backfired or because I maybe found out that spending my life on the road is not exactly my cup of tea. To me, this is actually the biggest risk! I don’t particularly like to be embarrassed or to admit defeat ☺
Psychological risks, I have had them and after ten years have gotten rid of them. I kind of felt guilty to live out my dream while in my opinion, the world was hurting. That’s one of the reason that I chose to make this trip all about giving back and helping feed millions. It’s all about enjoying one’s life while being responsible, two notions that can work together in harmony.
You may find it odd that I write about fears and risks. That’s because all the fears and risks I think I have are pretty unfounded and perceived. I am not scared of death or to hurt myself physically because I know that one day I will pass on that I will probably hurt myself doing something stupid. I am more concerned about what other people will say, think. Stuff that has nothing to do with the success or failure of the mission.
In other words, the number one enemy of this trip is me (was it not Pogo who said something in those lines?) and I must constantly challenge myself to erase all the unfounded doubts. By writing them down and commenting on them, it’s a way to fight them head on and so far, I am winning!
–
* Photo: coda
