Are You a Grasshopper? 7 Self-Assessment Questions
The Context
There’s a story in the Bible that what from I can tell, is most often used to illustrate the importance of perspective. God’s people are about to enter the land He promised them, so their leader Moses assigns twelve guys to go spy it out. Two of them come back saying the land is GREAT, “You guys! It’s finally time to settle down, we can stop wandering through the desert, you should SEE this place, it’s amazing! Look at these grapes, they’re bigger than my head!!” (That’s the Johanna version).The other ten spies? Completely terrified. They tell everyone there’s nothing but huge giants there. They say (roughly), “OMG those guys are MASSIVE next to us! We were basically grasshoppers next to them, so they definitely saw us as grasshoppers. Grasshoppers, right Bob? Yeah, definitely grasshoppers. We should probably get out of here, like now.”
So what was the difference between the ten and the two? (Yup, ten and two, like they teach you in driver’s ed). I’ll tell you what I think: The two were making decisions based on vision, the other ten based on fear. Obviously, everyone wants to be a person of vision, but consider the following characteristics to see where you fall on the vision – fear spectrum (I just made that spectrum up, but sounds good right? Anyway…
The Characteristics
1.) Risk Taking:
- Fear = A person who makes decisions based on fear will frequently protest
anything out of their comfort zone. They like their routine, they know what’s safe, and stick to that, thank you very much.
ii. Vision = A person who makes decisions based on vision is willing to take risks. This is a person who constantly challenges themselves and is always trying to stretch and grow his/her self.
2.) Perspective:
- Fear = A person of fear has a narrow, day to day perspective. I’m cupping my hand around one eye to show you, they can only see what’s immediately in front of them. They are in “survival mode” (to be fair, usually with good reason) and cannot see past the next demand or crisis.
- Vision= This is the person who has the 5 year, 10 year and 20 year goals all set. And probably more goals in between. They regularly assess where they are in light of where they want to be.
3.) Self- Image:
- Fear = Fear gives a skewed view of personal strengths and weaknesses. This is where the excuses come in: “I couldn’t possibly do that, I’m too…(old, young, uneducated, inadequate, tired, busy, etc.).” The excuses might have some validity, but typically are used to put a nicer face on the underlying cause: I am afraid.
- Vision = A person of vision typically has a strong sense of self- awareness. They have worked to become familiar with their strengths and limitations and use both as fuel to get to where and who they want to be.
4.) Character:
- Fear = This is where we see fear as something that can cripple or paralyze a person’s potential. A person of fear lacks confidence, is inconsistent, indecisive, and tend to be people pleasers.
- Vision = A person of vision tends to disregard the opinions of haters, “No offense, but I know who I am, I know where I’m going, I would thank you kindly to remove yourself and your negativity from my path, sir.”
5.) Commitment:
- Fear = When you are allowing yourself to be guided by fear, take yourself to the laundromat, because you, my friend, are wishy-washy. (HA! That was a good one!). Fear makes committing to ANYTHING, especially a big dream, SO uncomfortable. As a result, the person becomes conditional and immature (if this, this and this happen in this exact moment in this exact order, then and only then will I move forward). So, a person of fear never sticks to anything because they run when things go wrong.
- Vision = A person of vision has the ability to see the long-term result of “staying the course.” Think of your most loyal, dedicated, dependable friend. Good person to have around, yeah?
6.) Speech:
- Fear = Ooo this is a good one. Fear can’t help but to leak out in speech. This leads to negativity, gossip, backstabbing, and complaining without offering solutions. Ouch! Like the ten negative spies, a person of fear can only talk about the bad stuff, regardless of how much good stuff there is. Before you start thinking about your grumpy co-worker, remember this is a *self* assessment!
- Vision = Contrarily, a person of vision is the one who offers hope in a tough situation. They aim to encourage and ease burdens rather than add to them.
7.) Action:
- Fear = For a person stuck in fear, their action is inaction. They will sit, worry, and count all the reasons why not.
- Vision = A person of vision is driven by that vision. If you’re convinced going and conquering a land full of giants is the right thing to do, you will simply find a way to do it and conquer the barriers as they come. Rather than wasting time worrying, people of vision surround themselves with smart, encouraging friends for a sounding board, they are off and running. Chances are, the next time you see them, that thing they were chasing after they now hold in their hand.
The Conclusion
So, friend of mine, where do you fall on the vision-fear spectrum? Are you happy with where you’re at? I think all of us are more influenced by fear than we would care to admit; sometimes life is just a scary place. But I hope considering the seven characteristics above are an important step for you in shaking off the fear, and moving forward with the person you want to be. I hope you would fall in with the “unusual two” spies who saw and were determined to focus on the good (Can you imagine eating a grape the size of your head?). And I hope that, despite the fear and all the reasons why you shouldn’t, you fill your days running after and fighting for the vision that’s been placed inside of you.
God bless,
Johanna
