Scared of Sharks?

3.5 minute read

Let me tell you a story of the MIND, a story of FEAR, the invisible monster.

“FEAR is the stealer of DREAMS” - Stefan Skippy Scheepers

This might upset you if you do not understand scuba diving as a sport. There might also be unfamiliar terminology in the story,

however,

the message and lesson can be applied to many more scenarios.

So, In the Caribbean, there are plenty of places where you can scuba dive with sharks. I believe, roughly, 50% of all the dives will have one or other shark species around.

This story happened in Freeport, Bahamas

I booked myself a scuba dive excursion from the cruise ship, as I have a license to dive in open water.

We left the ship early with about 10 other passengers on the bus. With a short ride through the tropical area of Freeport Island, we arrived at the dive center 20 minutes later.

As we got off the bus and got a quick de breve of the area, and what to expect on the 3 dives we will be doing. One of the instructors pointed out that there is a high chance we will encounter sharks on 1 or 2 dives.

I could see some people who had never dived with a shark before got a fright…even I felt the fear festering in my chest, and I was there to have an adventure.

My heart started beating a bit faster, took a deep breath, with eyes wide open.

OOKKEEEEYYYY this is pretty serious!!

I had about 15 open-water dives then, and it was also my first with sharks, but let's GO!

Let’s Dive In

We just got straight on the boat and everyone got their gear, safety checks, and some rules on what to do and what NOT to do.

I could see 2 girls across from me were nervous about the dive with the sharks.

“What were they AFRAID of” I asked myself.

At that time, one of the instructors explained that they had been feeding sharks at this location for more than 25 years….

Instructors would put metal arm protection on, use long metal rods, and feed the sharks while many people watched. There would be more than 50 sharks swimming around having a feeding frenzy.

And NO ONE ever got bitten!!! No one!

So that must say something.

I am going to say it“ SHARKS DON’T WANT TO BITE HUMANS”. They are like puppies or some friendly animal. Just stronger, and under the water ☺

This dive company had everything on the line, their whole business. If anyone ever got hurt here, they would have to close their doors, probably.

You can just imagine…. No one would go back there.

And all the other people on the boat also went in the water. Around us were 2 or 3 other boats, each with 10 people on dive trips.

There was nothing to be scared of, however, these 2 girls let the FEAR of what might happen to get to them.

Only 1 of the girls went in the water and the other one stayed on the boat eventually.

After trying to convince her and reassuring her that everything would be fine, she still did not want to dive with us.

I guess she would not know how it is to swim with sharks. But I hope she overcame the fear of the future and gave it a try another day.

We then put on our gear and had a blast of a blissful day in the Caribbean.

A dream come true!

Lesson to learn

“Do not let the fear of the future hold you hostage in the present” - Stefan Skippy Scheepers

Sometimes not overthinking can lead to many wins in life. Because fear is just an illusion. As I look into my own life…there were so many things I worried about and still worry about that will NEVER happen.

When we invest, start to save money, or want to begin a business, we also think about all the things that can go wrong, and it paralyzes us. We never start, or we give up as soon as we start. We sabotage ourselves.

If you are reading this, I want to encourage you to take on that dream or goal you have! You are still alive, you have a chance. DO IT!!

I am so happy I jumped into the water, as now I have a story to tell and a valuable lesson to share😉 .

Until next week

Keep buying assets.

-Stefan