Free Instinct: The Power to Unleash Your Inborn Drive by T. D. Jakes Page B

with a vehicle for vacating the home, he opens the door to the wild! But is he ready?
    Welcome to the jungle of mating instincts, Facebook friends, and the ferocious and foreign prospects ofpublic performance. Independent environments now require that he disengage some behaviors that he developed within his last environment and develop instincts that will enable him to survive in the wild.
Instinct to Jump
    Now, some are pushed but some fear the low-grade life of playing it safe and jump into a waiting destiny they sense deep within. And, yes, it takes a certain kind of person to risk in this way. Curiously enough, these types become the people we end up reading about, watching on television, listening to on our iPods, and following on Twitter. They are what I call jumpers—people willing to jump out of their nests, or run out of their cages and into the free fall of the jungle, where they must survive by their instincts.
    Recently I encountered a quotation from a famous jumper that sums up his instinctive philosophy on life: “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma—which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and your intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”
    This statement comes from Steve Jobs, the visionary founder of Apple, recently declared the most recognizable brand in the world, surpassing Coca-Cola for the first time ever. You know where I encountered Mr. Jobs’ sage advice? On P. Diddy’s Instagram! As crazy as it sounds to consider what Steve Jobs, Sean Combs, and T.D. Jakes have in common, if nothing else we are all jumpers! We have each risked leaving our cages and venturing out into the wilds to discover how our dreams can be brought to life.
    Let me give you another example. Bob Johnson, who built up Black Entertainment Television (BET) into a multi-million-dollar enterprise, could not remain content with his achievements. After investing his time, energy, and resources into the unqualified success of BET, what did he do next? He sold it!
    He realized what everyone willing to leave the cage eventually realizes—entering the jungle is not a one-time event. Certainly, when he first entered television and considered the prospect of starting a new cable channel geared toward African-Americans, Mr. Johnson probably felt like he had entered a jungle. And yet, years later what once seemed like a jungle had become another cage.
    So Bob Johnson entered a new jungle of even wilder endeavors—purchasing the Charlotte Bobcats, which he later sold to Michael Jordan—another jumper and then some! Real estate, investments, asset management, and philanthropy became jungles forMr. Johnson as well. Based on his willingness to enter jungle after jungle, it’s no wonder then that Bob Johnson became the first black billionaire in our country.
    He knows what all eagles in the air know. It’s okay to be fearful, but don’t let the fear keep you from flying! And the rush of adrenaline that comes from overcoming one’s fears is addictive. When you leave the familiar and enter the unknown, your fear becomes refined by experience and hammered into tools of survival on the anvil of anxiety.
    I am never more passionate about a fight than when I fear my opponent. Fear teaches you to be cautious, careful, and conscientious. It also forces you to be creative, compassionate, and calculating. So often, fear becomes the fuel for your power in the jungle. As my friend Joyce Meyer says, “Feel the fear and do it anyway!”

CHAPTER 9

Instincts Under Pressure
    I nstincts under pressure crush the carbon of conformity and create diamonds. Each new season of life offers to train us for the next season if we pay attention and adapt. If in this training camp we call