Why Trust Makes Courage Possible

February 22, 2026 by Mike Manazir – (4-5 minutes)

Fear Vanished the Moment Trust Took Its Place

Trust is everything.

I learned that lesson at 14,000 feet over the Raeford, North Carolina, drop zone in the spring of 1994.

I was aboard a Fokker F100, preparing for my first free-fall jump with the U.S. Army Golden Knights. I had been trained extensively as a Navy pilot in the use of parachutes—but not this parachute. And I had never been trained in free fall.

In other words, I was not accustomed to voluntarily jumping out of perfectly good airplanes.

By then, I was a Lieutenant Commander with more than 2,000 hours in F-14 Tomcats and hundreds of night carrier landings. I thought I knew the specter of fear. I thought I knew how to put it down.

I was wrong.

I was on jump one of the Accelerated Free-fall syllabus or AFF. Two Delta Force operators were my instructors, one on each side of me, holding my arms as the cargo door opened. The rush of air filled the aircraft, and the checkerboard green North Carolina countryside came sharply into view—far, far below.

My knees buckled.

Not metaphorically. Physically.

I was terrified, paralyzed. The fear was so intense that my legs gave out beneath me. I shook my head and backed away from the door, saying, “Nope. Not going to do that. No, no, no.”

I had never been that frightened in my life. Both operators held me steady. The one on the right looked me directly in the eye as I backed into him and then he said calmly,

“Sir, this airplane is going to land—and we aren’t going to be on it. We can either throw you out, or you can take us out. Your call.”

And just like that, the fear vanished. As I looked in that professional’s eyes, a sense of calm…and trust…replaced my terror. I had just met these men, yet in that instant I knew I could trust them completely. They knew what they were doing. Even if I blacked out, even if everything went wrong, I knew they would not let me die.

I knew that in my soul. Instantly. Today, I can describe it, but I cannot explain it.

“OK,” I said, as we repositioned by the door. “One, two, three… off.”

And out we went.

The free fall was exhilarating! I was so captivated by the experience—watching the aircraft disappear above us—so captivated that I forgot to pull my ripcord! Even with the briefed visual signals that I had been trained on. I was so overwhelmed. One of the operators pulled it for me as he tracked away.

The chute opened with a violent snap, the roar of the wind fell silent, and I floated down, stunned by the beauty of it all.

I missed the drop zone and landed in a muddy cornfield a mile and a half away. The operators ran toward me, worried they’d injured the Navy guy.

I jumped up, covered in mud, grinning like a kid.

“Can we do that again?”

That extraordinary experience only happened because of trust—total trust. Without it, fear would have drained my courage and left me frozen on the floor of that aircraft.

That’s the essence of leadership.

When leaders earn trust, fear loses its grip.

Trust rests on three pillars—the 3 Cs.

Character. You must be trusted to do the right thing. Not what you say you believe, but what you consistently do—especially when it costs you something.

Competence. You must be trusted to know what you’re doing. An honest but incompetent leader can cause as much damage as a dishonest one.

Consistency. You do the right thing every time. Your reliability is non-negotiable. Nobody trusts something that works “most of the time.”

When these three align, trust becomes transformational.

And when trust is present, fear no longer shapes what’s possible.

Reflection Question

Who has your back when you face fearful unknowns—and what are you doing to become that kind of leader for others?

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P.S.

If this message stirred something in you—share it. Forward it to a friend, colleague, or your leadership team. Better yet—let’s talk.

Let’s raise up a generation of leaders who know how to Lead to Win.

Mike Manazir
Bestselling Author | Navy Admiral | Fighter Pilot | Leadership Coach

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