Gabriella Goddard Shows Us How to Give Up Living Life Passively in New Book

Isn´t it about time we stopped letting destiny govern our way of life and started taking control of who we are and where we want to go?

It´s not enough to think about it. We need a game plan. Gabriella Goddard gives us that game plan in her new book, "Gulp!: The 7 day Crash Course to Master Fear and Break Through Any Challenge" available by Bantam Dell Books.

Gulp! is the ground-breaking 7-day guide that inspires you to "give up living passively!" and make powerful changes in your life "calmly and swiftly." It´s a practical, effective everyday guide designed to inspire real people to make real changes. It will inspire you to kick start your change and help keep you on track to see it through to the end.

We interviewed Gabriella to find out the reasons why she wrote this book and to learn how we all can give up living life passively and instead live it to the fullest.

Thank you for this interview, Gabriella. Can we start off by having you tell us why you wrote your book?

It´s always been my dream to write a book ever since I was a child reading "Nancy Drew" at night under the duvet covers with a flashlight. But somehow that dream got lost as I grew up and followed a more conventional career path. Then, a few years ago I suffered through a breast cancer scare. It was a real wake up call and a crucial turning point in my life. Faced with the possibility of dying, something flipped inside me and I asked, "If not now…then when?" And that´s when I started to write. My initial scribblings later turned into Gulp! and I was very fortunate that it was picked up by such a reputable publisher as Bantam Dell.

Why did you decide to break it up into seven days? Can we really learn this in seven days?

If there´s one thing my cancer scare taught me is that having "focus" in your life can be incredibly powerful. That´s why I broke Gulp! up into seven days. Each day has a specific theme. For example Day 1 focuses on putting a stake in the ground and making a firm commitment. In Day 2 we put fear under the microscope and break it down into easy "fear-busting" chunks. And later in Day 5, we focus entirely on developing a plan that feels fun to follow.

So if you´re facing a smaller Gulp! moment like wanting to ask someone out on a date, or thinking of signing up to a photography class on your own, or plucking up the courage to say "no" when you´d normally say "yes," then it´s perfectly feasible to Gulp! in a week.

For bigger Gulp! moments, like changing your job, dealing with a serious illness or leaving your partner, you´ll probably need to spread the seven day roadmap over a longer period of time. But the principle stays the same. You work through each day and focus on one specific theme. And before you know it, you´ll have made your Gulp! and will be looking around for the next one!

Why do you think it´s hard for people to give up living life passively and take the bull by the horns to create a better life for themselves?

This is a great question. At the moment America is on the brink of a major recession, and so is the rest of the world. This is a global wake up call. If there´s any moment in time to take the bull by the horns and give up living passively – it´s now! But sometimes we get stuck in our comfort zone and things have to get really bad before we do something about them.

In any moment in time we have a choice. Do we sit back and wait, and hope this current crisis will blow over? Or do we take charge of our life and use this as a catalyst for making fundamental changes that will lead us to a happier and more fulfilling life?

I know which path I´m going to choose, but what about you?

In your book, you talk about recognizing your ´pivot point.´ What is this exactly and how do you recognize it?

The "pivot point" is that moment when a decision just clicks into place. You go from "just thinking about it" to actually making a firm commitment to making it happen. Inside you have a strong sense of "knowingness" about what you need to do. For me, this feels a bit like a bicycle gear when it clicks into a higher gear. And it´s usually followed by a physical ! You know when you´re there because something shifts, and you feel a sense of certainty about your way forward. You´re still nervous as hell about it, but there is a bubbling sense of excitement underneath the fear and a real commitment to giving it a jolly good shot.

What is "the fear cycle"?

Fear is what holds most people back from making important changes in their life. The trouble is that often we tar the whole situation with the "fear" brush, when if you break it down, there may only be one or two components of the situation that might trigger fearful thoughts. For example, Sue was "petrified of public speaking," but when she broke this down she realized her biggest fear was forgetting her words. This made the situation more manageable and so she focused on doing things to ensure she wouldn´t forget her words, like making good Powerpoint slides and practicing in front of the mirror beforehand.

That´s why I created The Fear Cycle, to help people break down their fear into "fear busting" chunks. There are five stages:

Stage 1: Reality - what are the facts and figures of the current situation?

Stage 2: Perception – what´s your perception about the current situation?

Stage 3: Imagining - what do you imagine might happen?

Stage 4: Feeling - how does this make you feel?

Stage 5: Reacting - and how does this make you want to react?

You can short circuit fear by changing your view at any one of these stages. And that´s the simplicity of it!

You mention eight ´sparks´ to ignite your imagination to do things you never thought possible. Can you mention a couple?

When you step outside your comfort zone you enter the void of the unknown. On one hand, this can be incredibly scary, but on the other hand you open yourself up to new possibilities and opportunities – if you´re open enough to see them! The problem is that we can get stuck in one way of thinking. The eight "creative sparks" help people fire up their imagination.

One of my favorite "creative sparks" is to get people to research and write about someone who inspires them because they challenged the status quo. People like Nelson Mandela, Marie Curie, Bill Gates, Rosa Louise McCauley Parks, Richard Branson and Mahatma Gandhi. When you tap into the energy of these amazing people something powerful can shift within you – as you realize that the impossible can be possible. And they´ve proved it.

Another of my favorite "creative sparks" is to challenge limiting beliefs. What I get people to do is write down some of the beliefs that hold them back. And then I ask them to change just one word in the sentence that will completely shift the meaning.

For example, you can change "Curiosity killed the cat," to "Curiosity CREATED the cat." Or another example is, "All good things come to those that wait," can be changed to "All good things come to those that WHISTLE."

Try it out. It can be a lot of fun!

Gabriella, out of all the books on the market today with similar themes, what can you tell me to convince me that your book stands out from all the others?

Gulp! is a great book for people who are feeling unsettled about the current economic downturn and don´t want to wait around for fate to happen. It´s ideal for people who want to use this potential crisis point as a catalyst for putting together a game plan that fulfills their dreams and creates the life they´ve always wanted to live.

Gulp! provides a down to earth, no-nonsense 7 day roadmap that will enable people to approach their change calmly and confidently. The practical tools and techniques in Gulp! will show people how to break through their fear, how to create a compelling vision, how to prepare a plan that feels fun to follow, how to hone their instinct and inner navigation system and most importantly how to cultivate the inner courage and outer calm to see the change through in times of crisis.

Ongoing support is crucial when people are navigating through change, which is why there are loads of free resources on my website www.gulptime.com to help keep people motivated and on track.

Thank you for this interview, Gabriella. Can you tell us where we might pick up a copy of your book?

Thank you for letting me share my story. Gulp! is available at all good bookstores and online at Amazon. Plus I have a special offer for people who want to give up living passively and "recession-proof" their life. For a limited time only I´m offering a free 30 day One Big Gulp! Kit that includes a 25 page eWorkbook, daily emails for 30 days, regular podcasts and the chance to win coaching sessions with me. People can sign up at www.gulptime.com.