Just Jump!
Aug 18, 2025"Just jump, Houben!"
That’s what my friends shouted from behind a rock in a narrow canyon in Egypt.
The path had forced us onto two small ledges on opposite walls.
They had already disappeared around the bend.
I hadn’t.
My ledge just… ended. And I froze.
My fear of heights kicked in — made worse by poor depth perception after an eye surgery.
All I saw was a deep, dark gap. The more they yelled “just jump,” the more panic took over.
I was stuck.
Eventually, one friend walked back.
He appeared below me — his head well above my waist.
I was 50 centimeters off the ground.
He lifted me down from the ledge.
The "abyss" was a small step. But my fear had been real.
And honestly? I was a bit resentful.
Why hadn’t they just waited at the gap?
Later, I realized:
📌 What feels like a small step for one person can seem like a canyon to someone else.
💡 That’s the difference between the Stretch Zone and the Panic Zone.
In schools and organizations, we often say the same thing my friends said:
👉 “Just do it.”
👉 “Get over it.”
👉 “It’s not that hard.”
But real learning stops where panic begins.
Our job as educators is not to shout from the other side.
It’s to walk back to the ledge.
To stand beside someone.
To understand their perspective.
And help them see their next step.
So before you ask someone to jump…
Are you seeing a small step — or their canyon?
