The 2 x 4 lessons
You’ll need two 8-foot boards and six five-gallon buckets. Each board is a standard 2 x 4, about two inches by four inches in size. And the bucket is about two feet deep.
The first lesson is simple: Put the board on the floor and have a colleague walk from one end to the other.
Now, put it across three buckets and try again.
It should be clear that the fear is all imagined. We don’t typically have trouble walking on a board that’s nearly four inches wide. But the buckets change our narrative about risk.
The second lesson: Put the first board back on the floor and place another board alongside it, about 30 inches apart.
Now, have a second colleague walk on one board while the first takes a walk on their board. It’s do-able, but awkward.
Try it again, but with them supporting each other as they walk. Hand to hand, headed in the same direction. And then try it with the buckets.
We get much further together.