The Other Side of Fear

MUSINGS FROM A COACH - 26 AUGUST '25

I've seen or listened to my fair share of "talks", "motivational speeches" or unique documentaries by current or former athletes and found most of them interesting to some degree. But there's been a few that have "stuck" with me - one of which is: Mark Mathews - Big Wave Surfer, "The Other Side of Fear"

I've pulled a couple of quotes from Mark out this film, but honestly, there are dozens that can apply to all of us in any scenario of life or sport. There's just a gold mine of great stuff.

"I figured eventually, that the most fundamental part to dealing with fear, to pushing yourself beyond your comfort zone, to being able to find what your potential might be, is that you’ve gotta want it more than your fear it." - Mark Mathews For many endurance athletes, fear can arise for many different reasons: fear of open water or fear of technical descents, for example. But for many people, fear can arrise for simply just the athlete's perceived enormity of the event itself. "Can I even do this?" "...You've gotta want it more than you fear it." says it all. This is one of those scenarios where we can "will" ourselves to the start line.

“The only way through fear is experience.” - Mark Mathews 

And THIS is why I'm such a believer in racing. Racing is a skill, the more you do it, the better you get. At the same time, racing can turn even the toughest of us to a quivering mess right up to the start gun. That over-stimulated anxiousness, or fear, is something that changes over time with experience - from a detriment to an asset.

While we never want to get rid of that excitement, anxiousness or nervousness before something that generates a bit of fear, we definitely don't want it to become a liability. So, yes, one way, "...Through fear is experience."

Finally, and I wont quote Mark here but rather paraphrase:

When setting out a big goal and looking to get motivation, you should answer three questions: What, Why and Who. 

• What does success look like?

• Why do I want to succeed?

• Who's going to help me get there?

Gold. Have a great week!