Get out of your depth (Or "How to succeed by throwing yourself into situations where you don't know what you're doing")

I was nervous.

It was 1997, and I'd just moved to London.

I'd managed to get a job working for a technology consultancy, and I felt like I was out of my depth.

Because I was out of my depth.

It was my first stint at being a consultant, and I was starting to realise how much I didn't know.

Our offices were on the top two floors of Centrepoint, a skyscraper on the corner of Tottenham Court Road and Oxford Street in central London.

So I did my best. I watched and listened and learned.

I "did" courage. I said "yes" to things I would have been more comfortable saying "no" to.

I made mistakes.

I was criticised. More often, I criticised myself.

Sometimes I looked silly. Sometimes I didn't. I kept taking action and learning and growing.

I was terrified of public speaking.

I decided to get better at it. So I experimented with public speaking while feeling terrified.

I got better at it.

I was walking past Centrepoint today when it suddenly struck me:

I couldn't have dreamt back in 1997 that I would be living the life I have today.

But I owe it at least in part to the "me" who was willing to get out of his depth back in 1997.

And that's the thing. While I was often worried, anxious, and insecure, there was one thing I knew for sure:

Sometimes the only way you grow is by getting out of your depth.

So how about you? What are some of the possibilities you could bring to life if you get out of your depth?

Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

Big love

Jamie