The inability of business owners to master their FEAR and act now, is one of the largest barriers to their success…
Fear is a crippling disease that infiltrates silently, unknowingly, until the day you’re faced with deciding what colour to use on your business cards, and the sheer weight of the decision is too much to face!!
I see and hear it each week – business owners or entrepreneurs getting caught out by the fears in their lives and business, and these fears really holding them back.
FEAR OF FAILURE, FEAR OF SUCCESS, FEAR OF CRITICISM, FEAR OF NOT BEING ENOUGH…. THE LIST IS ENDLESS.
Don’t be fooled. I am not immune to fear. BUT recognising my fears and admitting I had them in the first place was the first step. Whats more, learning how many of the decisions I made were governed by fear helped me realise it couldn’t continue….
Despite this, I discovered acting from a place of confidence and not a place of fear – at first, didn’t come naturally…..
It’s a bit uncomfortable to watch isn’t it? – And I’m not referring to my acting skills!
Fear is an inhibitor. It stops great ideas, future growth AND your success dead in their tracks….
Address your FEARS by recognising them when they surface…
Fear of Imperfection
You heard it; “Nup, it’s just not right; I mean I can’t decide, dark blue or light blue??”.
Who cares?! There is no need to get everything right the first time. If it’s not bang on the first time, screw it – do it again. Take action today.
We learn from NOT doing the same thing twice... Think on it. If Apple had waited to launch the iPad until it was ‘perfect’ we’d still be waiting for iPad 1 (and not its 5th or 6th reincarnation!)
Loss of Control
Business owners have to let go. You have to let go of the tasks and work which sap time and that can be delegated to staff or outsourced.
Identify those tasks today – Let go of them. Yes, it may take an hour or two to train someone, but think of the rewards you reap from those 1 or 2 hours…
Free your time up to work ON your business not IN your business.
Fear of Success
Sounds crazy huh. But some business owners and entrepreneurs just know that their idea will be a success that it will be a hit – but it’s their fear of that success holds them back.
Fear that people will talk about their success, fear they’re just not ready…this fear makes certain many good ideas never see the light of day!
Focus on the good and understand your greatest motivating factors, in order to put this fear to bed. Focus on your end goal.
Fear of the Unknown
You have a new idea, concept or product and here you are; ‘that’s it, all kinds of things can go wrong, so I’ll just shelve it’ ….the fear of the unknown can generate heaps of fear and will stop your progress immediately. The good news is that it needn’t be that way…
It’s time to get a map. Your map is your plan – specifically your action plan.
The ‘unknown’ can be scary, but creating an action plan will put ‘it right in front of you’ – and like a GPS, you’ll know exactly which route to take.
Fear of Failure
Similar to the Fear of Criticism, the fear of failure is the most common fear that holds us back… ‘What if it doesn’t work?’, ‘what if they say no…’ ‘No; I can’t do it because they won’t buy’ …
How many times have you told yourself this? And if a prospect says no, so what? Go back to your plan, take action and start again today.
Failures will come and failures will go. Fail swiftly and small and you will learn. Put yourself out there. Be your biggest fan.
When interviewed and boldly asked if he felt like a failure and if he thought he should just give up by now, Mr Thomas Edison replied, “Why would I feel like a failure? And why would I ever give up? I now know definitively over 9,000 ways an electric light bulb will not work. Success is almost in my grasp.” Shortly thereafter, after over 10,000 attempts, Thomas Edison invented the light bulb.”
As mentioned above, I’m not immune to fears. Simply, I’ve just recognised them and address them when they surface…
Too many people say address your fears, tackle them head on… the problem is this doesn’t help all that much. Everyone at some time has fears – but they are diminished when you’re supported.
Enlist a support crew – this could be a trusted friend, a mentor or a coach… Enlist and face your fears head on with ‘To hell with it, I’ll just do it!’ Trample them. You’ll be amazed at what you will achieve…
And remember,
“The greatest mistake you can make in life is to continually be afraid you will make one”
What are you most afraid of? FEAR not to leave a comment below.
Gold!
haha so great guys! And VERY relevant to me. I have become so aware of some of the fears that have been driving my decision making (or lack of decision making). I’m very glad to have you guys to kick me in the butt when I need it. Keep up the good work!
Andrew, I’m sick in bed with a nasty cold and when your email hit my inbox I knew it was just what I needed – nothing like learning through entertainment! Haha.
My biggest fear has been around releasing the way I KNOW I make money and building a new business model to serve an audience I’m much more energized by (smart start ups and small business) and that aligns better with the lifestyle I’ve pursued. The time, retraining myself into new ways of doing things, investment and lack of cash flow while building it is the scariest thing I’ve ever encountered. I’ve had to consciously fight the fear so as not to default to my old ways of doing business 😉
I nearly fell off my chair watching this. So funny “6 months to pick a color” or “we almost kept up with inflation” Hahahaha!! loved it. Definitely saw myself in most of these scenarios, fear of imperfection as I’m trying to build new skills & fear of failure hold me back. I’m working on it 🙂 great video & love the back drop in the park.
We re enjoying helping you Tamar. I am glad you liked it.
thanks for sharing this Simone. What you have described is one of the biggest fears business owners go through. We will have to chat very soon. when you are better!!!!
Thanks Sonia – I am pleased you liked it. Its good to see fears made to look silly!!
hahaha.. nice way of conveying the message Andrew 🙂 I specially liked the absurdity of 6 months for a color – I could relate to so many things I’ve been pushing since I’m not ready yet! I think I should also just try n get the version 1 going and then keep improving.
Thanks again 🙂
Great copy BTW.
Greatest fear — Alzheimers.
One doesn’t discover new lands without consenting to lose sight of the shore for a very long time.
Andre Gide
“I’ve learned in a hundred ways that I rarely regretted acting but often regretted NOT acting fast enough.”
Jack Welch
Thanks Anita
Your welcome Rashmi
Hi Andrew & Blake,
Very well done. Great way of making your point.
The colour thing got me. Yes I have been there. Spent time and worry about simple things like colour. You just made me understand that fear is having a major hold on me.
thanks chaps.!!
Hi Andrew
Thanks for your very informative presentation yesterday at the Sydney Hilton. I love the lyrics of the song you played, may I have the name of the title and the singer please.
Thanks and regards
Jovie
Hi Jovie – Thanks for that. The song is called the rose and its sung by Bette Midler. Andrew