| We all understand the significance of
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| | later vacations Tom and I worked out a
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| agility to grow a successful business.
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| | compromise. He would dive, then return to
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| But how agile are we really and how can
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| | snorkel with me. Although not much of a
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| agility in our personal life help us grow
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| | swimmer, I was a great flailer. I
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| in our business life?A near-drowning
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| | snorkeled in the shallows, where I could
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| experience when I was a child left me
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| | stand up when I tired from flailing or
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| wary of swimming and totally unwilling to
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| | needed to adjust my mask. Yoga practice
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| go deeper than snorkeling along the
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| | had prepared me for proper breathing and
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| water's surface on a trip to Fiji.Before
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| | body control, and over time my confidence
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| Tom and I went to Fiji, he had already
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| | grew. So did the quality of my flailing.
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| been scuba diving many times during the
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| | To this day my nephew calls me shark
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| preceding five years. I'd heard his fun
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| | bait.Back to Fiji: I watched a young girl
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| stories, but I knew he still occasionally
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| | with a mental disability go out doggedly
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| experienced anxiety due to a long-ago
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| | every day learning to dive, while I
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| diving incident. Tom, the daredevil, with
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| | stayed safely on the surface, afraid to
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| all his diving experience, having
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| | leave my shallow comfort zone for the
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| anxiety? That made it even harder for me
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| | deeper unknown. I wondered who had the
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| to decide to go for it. The only way I
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| | greater disability, she or I. Hers was
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| would venture out on the dive boat was
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| | real, mine only imagined. Who was more
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| with the promise to myself that I could
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| | agile?Every afternoon, Tom regaled me
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| choose not to go into the water.Upon
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| | with stories of turtles, lionfish,
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| arrival at the reef, the first thing the
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| | hammerhead sharks and the vibrant coral
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| dive master talked about was sharks.
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| | he saw on his dives while I continued
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| "This is their world. They're in control.
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| | flailing about in the shallows. But each
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| Don't approach or move toward them.
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| | day I snorkeled into deeper and deeper
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| Respect them. Respect their space."
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| | water until finally, on day four of my
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| Actually, sharks didn't scare me at all.
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| | vacation, I built up the confidence to
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| I was too afraid of the water to worry
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| | approach the edge of a 300-foot wall.
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| about sharks. First I had to get into the
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| | Looking into its depths I was suddenly no
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| water. Then I'd think about
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| | longer content to observe from the
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| sharks.Several years earlier on Maui I
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| | surface. My curiosity engaged, I longed
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| had tried to learn to dive. On that first
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| | to dive deep and envelope myself in the
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| attempt Tom, my 14-year-old nephew Matt
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| | dark wonders below. I resolved to try
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| and I started our lessons in the pool. As
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| | diving again.My first dive was in a
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| soon as the water closed over my face
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| | shallow bay. I clung to the bottom,
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| mask and I struggled with the weight of
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| | pulling up sand and sea grass at 15 feet
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| the tank and BCD vest that threatened to
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| | down. Easy. Being close to the bottom
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| drown me, I climbed out of the pool and
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| | gave me security and perspective, and the
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| didn't look back. Within the safety of
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| | small success encouraged me to go for
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| the shore, I enjoyed a massage instead.
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| | more.On the second dive I dove longer and
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| While they took to the ocean like fish,
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| | deeper to 25 feet. On my third dive, we
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| exploring coral reefs, shipwrecks and the
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| | boated to a sandy ledge that led to the
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| limitless variety of sea life, I clung to
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| | 300-foot wall I was ready to explore. The
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| my beach chair with my self-help book.On
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| | boat rocked on five-foot swells.
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