Beast Mode

Located on the edge of Nantucket Sound, Willowbend Country Club is one of the most idyllic settings in New England. Well-known radio host Matt Pitta had asked me and New York Times-bestselling author Casey Sherman to discuss our books and take questions from the membership.

The only problem was, we had some unwelcome company on stage: ‘the beast.’

You see, when my anxiety gets really bad, it feels like there’s a creature stalking me, breathing down my neck, almost on me. It’s awful. And speaking in this beautiful setting, with this acclaimed author, at the invitation of a popular radio host, it was all food for the beast. And the beast was getting big.

So I talked to it. I turned and addressed the beast, and as I told the story of my journey in business, I reminded the beast of all the places we’d been together, all the things we’d done together. How the beast had been with me at five years old. When my parents would go out to dinner, it would reach out, take hold of my throat, and squeeze.

The beast went skiing with me. It stood with me and my wife on the altar at our wedding. It packed a bag and joined us on our honeymoon. It came on sales calls, slept in my hotel rooms, attended my kids’ birthday parties (without bringing a present).

The beast was with me that day, as it is most days. But speaking to it was new, and judging by the standing ovation, I think the crowd was glad we addressed it.