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Since returning to earth, guitar-strumming space man Chris Hadfield has been sharing his experiences with the world, imparting the practical lessons he’s learned during his career on and off the planet. He spoke to JOSEPH O’CONNOR about facing your fears and achieving your goals.
very once in a while a person of international The subject of dealing with fear and how to maximise notoriety comes along and captures the hearts and your potential forms the basis of our conversation. It’s minds of the Irish people. It could be a musician, a a topic that Hadfield has been interested in since he politician, an actor or a businessperson; no matter started giving talks 23 years ago. He begins with his take what their profession, they somehow connect on fear. “Often we have some sort of unspoken, grey with the Irish psyche and are quickly claimed as amorphous fear. This dictates our actions when in fact one of our own. it may be based on no actual danger at all,” he explains. One such person is Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield is well placed to discuss fear. He was once Hadfield. Cmdr Hadfield became the world’s blinded during a spacewalk, something he recounted in a best known astronaut when he started tweeting TED Talk last year. He believes in order to overcome our images and videos from space while on fears we must first identify the difference between the International Space Station between the danger and the fear. “Take for example 2012 and 2013. Through his regular the fear of flying,” he says. “It’s an easy commentary (and occasional David thing to say. You don’t have to do any Bowie rendition) on social media, research but what you’re doing is The key is to celebrate he took us closer to space than ever denying yourself the ability to see the small successes, before and to our delight he took the world by simply hiding behind to recognise that there’s a particular interest in Ireland, ‘I’m afraid of’. Instead you should victory every day. It tweeting as Gaeilge in February acknowledge your fear of flying builds a growing sense 2013: “Tá Éire fíorálainn! Land but question what you are actually of green hills and dark beer. With afraid of. Is it the flying? Is it hitting of competence and Dublin glowing in the Irish night.” the ground? Is it dying in a crash? momentum Since returning to earth and hanging If you start digging into it, you very up the space suit, Hadfield has kept rapidly understand that your chances of himself busy. From motivational speaking dying in the car ride on the way to the airport to tourism promotion, from writing bestsellers are significantly higher than dying in the airplane.” to recording albums, he’s had an action-packed schedule. It may sound trivial to use the example of flying This is all the more evident when I catch up with him by but, according to Hadfield, this way of evaluating and long distance call on a Friday morning in Toronto. He decomposing the fear can be applied to anything. “You has a flight to New Jersey to catch so he pulls over on the need to assess what the fear is keeping you from doing. highway en route to the airport to take the call. Dig into the actual danger that is causing this irrational, 36
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InBUSINESS | Q2 2015
29/06/2015 15:10