Are you ready for a leap of faith?

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My part was easy. While dropping from the sky at 120 miles per hour, I placed my faith in the Skydive Twin Cities team to make sure we didn’t need a spatula to finish the story.  As my wife, son and daughter watched from the ground…it occurred to me my life is fully dependent upon others.

Twenty years ago, while celebrating my 30th birthday I was energized by the idea of skydiving to mark the milestone. My wife Melinda intervened: “You have two little kids and not enough life insurance,” she reasoned. As I calculated how to back out on my buddies, she added: “maybe when you’re 50.”

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On my 50th birthday, Melinda gave me a skydiving gift certificate. She had faith in our friend Kevin Burkart that gave me the courage to take the leap: Kevin is an amazingly gifted athlete and the world record holder for specially-abled skydiving. If Kevin can soar with one arm…then surely I can survive a woosie tandem jump!

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As the altimeter signaled 13,000 feet, Kevin and I absorbed this leadership message: “Does anything significant ever happen alone?” Pilot Chase held the plane steady while Bernie the photographer threw the door open. Dan buckled me to his chest, while faith mentor Kevin reminded me this was a good start on my bucket list. What are friends for?

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The moment of truth is anything but peaceful: at 120 miles per hour the wind is loud as a freight train and violent as a tornado. The wind forces your mouth open, even if you didn’t want to smile. Kevin soared in from above, resting to my right as “Bernie” snapped pictures and recorded HD video – Dan anchored our choreography. What a thrill!

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We fell 7000 feet in one minute. It never occurred to me the parachute could fail. I could see the Minneapolis skyline 45 miles away as we soared across the horizon. The five minute joy ride to earth was worth the wait.

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Fear has a lot to do with feeling alone…and it’s worse when you’re not able to trust the expertise of the people around you. In that way, my first skydiving adventure wasn’t a leap of faith at all.

Good leaders make a habit of surrounding themselves with good people who help us reach our dreams.  And we put our trust in others when taking a leap of faith.

What leap of faith are you preparing to take…and who is helping you?[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]