Olivia: What if facing your biggest fear meant plunging headfirst into icy water? Welcome to When It Happened, I'm Olivia, where we explore moments that change everything. Olivia: Meet Marianne Power, a London writer seemingly living the dream. But underneath, she felt lost, culminating in a hangover epiphany: something had to change. Her wild plan? A year living by self-help books, documented in her memoir "Help Me!". First up: Susan Jeffers' "Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway." This challenge didn't involve affirmations or vision boards, oh no. It led her straight to the edge… of a freezing cold pond on New Year's Day. Olivia: Picture it: Hampstead Ponds, London. A biting five degrees Celsius – that’s forty-one Fahrenheit. Hardy regulars wade in like it’s nothing. Marianne’s heart pounds. Can she? Taking a breath, she plunges. The shock is instant – like being stabbed by a million tiny icicles. Pure panic, frantic paddling. But then, something shifts. The shock melts into… euphoria? Emerging gasping, flushed but beaming, she thinks, "This is what it's like to be truly alive!" Olivia: This icy plunge wasn't just about conquering cold; it was Marianne's first real leap, the literal embodiment of "Feel the Fear." It set the tone for her entire year, proving she was serious and giving her courage for later challenges like stand-up comedy and nude modeling. More deeply, it foreshadows the book's core message: these big, scary actions are catalysts, but lasting change comes less from rigid rules and more from embracing vulnerability and discovering your own resilience. Olivia: So, what can we learn? One: Sometimes, just doing the scary thing, even if it feels absurd, shatters inertia. Two: Growth often lies just outside your comfort zone, revealing not fearlessness, but the resilience you already possess. Maybe real change starts with goosebumps. That’s all for this week on When It Happened. Join me next time!