This quote speaks to me on several levels. One, I love Bradbury. Since I read Fahrenheit 451 in the 8th grade, his works have always fascinated me. His short stories are beautifully conducted, always leaving readers’ brains scrambling. Two, since I was younger, I always heard the phrase “You have to throw them in the deep. You either sink or swim.”

Bradbury is on to something here. We spend our lives worried about the unknown, wasting time that could be spent bettering ourselves. Scared of failure and not being enough, we choose to sit atop the cliff, waiting for the secure knowledge that we won’t plummet to our death if we jump. Instead, we need that leap of faith. That little push to test ourselves.

Take baby birds for example. They spend their whole lives in the nest with their mother caring for them, providing food and protection from predators. The young know nothing of survival or caring for themselves. Then, one day they get pushed into the real world…literally. Their moms push them out of the nest, letting them figure out flight on their own. Now, natural instinct takes over before the bird can reach the ground (although there has been times where gravity came out the victor), but they’re forced to literally build their wings as they’re falling.

As humans, we don’t literally get pushed out of a nest or jump off a cliff, but metaphorically we do it every day. Every decision we make is whether we jump or retreat back to safe ground. Those that jump are always going to get the greater benefit.

The best way to learn is to immerse yourself in the experience. You literally build your knowledge as you’re working. There is no better way to gain skills than putting yourself in situations where you need to figure it out yourself. No one is going to be willing to hold your hand throughout life, so you need to figure out a way to support yourself. Your wings will begin forming on that ledge, but they won’t gain strength until you test them.

In summary…go for it. Take the bull by the horns. Don’t let the fear of uncertainty stop you. You’ll never know what you’re capable of until you test the limits.