Fear is a distressing emotion that if not overcome, can cause even the best of the best to pull away and hide from the dread of failure.
Fear = a distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, pain, etc., whether the threat is real or imagined; the feeling or condition of being afraid.
Yes, everyone faces fear! Even those who seem to be some of the strongest and boldest leaders often face the trepidation that fear brings. We often imagine what might happen if things don’t go right.
When we begin a new venture; maybe a new business venture or maybe meeting someone for the first time or maybe you are starting a new job that you just got hired onto or you are called on to give a talk or speech in front of a lot of people, or maybe you are just shy to meet new people, almost without exception, we all feel an apprehension about stepping out and doing that new thing. Some things such as auto racing never get past the feeling of fear because of the danger that is involved. I am a semi truck driver and when I am loaded to 80,000 pounds, there is an adrenalin flow that I always have because of a slight fear because of the dangers present. There always seems to be an apprehension of what could happen out there on the road. Even if I don’t make a mistake, what if someone else does?!
Do I let that fear keep me from starting out on a trip? Do I shudder at the thoughts of what could happen? Maybe for a moment! But then I face the fear and say NO, “I am not going to let this fear stop me from going”, although I embrace the potential for danger and proceed with caution. The more I drove, the less the fear became, but to this day it is still there to a degree.
I believe that fear is good in the fact that it is there to protect us. To protect us from doing something stupid without giving any thought to the consequences that could happen. Fear can be a bad thing if it cripples us so much that we are not able to move forward: to give that speech, to take off with the truck, to start a business venture or to just pick up the phone and call someone. We are all affected to a different degree by certain fears. For example, I am not afraid to go out on the water and water ski like some are but to pick up the phone and call a prospect about my business opportunity; that was crippling for me at first.
What if I am rejected by the person I am about to talk to?
What if I can’t think of what to say?
or
What if I don’t please my new boss?
What if I go off the road and damage my load?
What will my family and friends think of me if I fail?
This is a list of common fears that we face on a daily basis. The fear of failing has kept many a people from accomplishing their goals. Are you going to let it stop you? Oftentimes we need help from others to overcome our fear. It is important to have someone you can listen to and receive encouragement on a daily basis. My personal development coach has been crucial to overcoming my fear. Although the fear has not left completely, I am no longer crippled by its affects and I get the job done whether it is submitting an article, talking on the phone to a new business prospect risking some of my hard earned money making an investment in something that has profit potential or doing something that I think is going to be criticized by others.
Am I afraid I might fail? I might. But if I do, I will get up and try again; hopefully this time with more wisdom and understanding so I will be more apt to succeed. Like one of my mentors said “if you fail, fail forward”. I was told to learn from my failures and use them as a stepping stone to grow upon.
So next time fear stares you in the face what are you going to do? Are you going to be cowardly and let fear defeat you? Or are you going to face it head on and tell yourself “success or failure, I am going to win the fight over fear. I’m not going to let some emotion defeat me because it is not really true anyway”. Even if we are to fail at this attempt, we have not failed unless we quit and don’t try again.
Let’s win together!
Paul Mattison
Business Entrepreneur
507-752-6102
