Your Fear of Failure is Limiting Your Potential and Success
Fear can keep you paralyzed if you let it
You’re staring down the end of a barrel, petrified. You’re afraid of making the wrong choice, of doing something wrong.You’re afraid to fail. You’re afraid of falling flat on your face. But what’s the worst that can happen?You get a little humiliated. You end up broke. You learn.Chances are you were already broke and humiliated, but you were hiding in private. You hid in the dark recesses of shadows, fearing the sunlight. You didn’t think you deserved the sunlight.You think you don’t have what it takes. You think you’re going to fail.You’re feeling like you lost when you haven’t even tried. It’s time to try. What’s the worst thing that could happen?
Acknowledge the fear
Fear is a normal thing. Everyone is afraid of something. You may be afraid of snakes. You may be afraid of drowning. You may be afraid of heights, like me.Having fear is normal. It’s an evolutionary response to danger. You fear because you don’t want to die. Ironically, you might as well have died because you’re not living.Fear can keep you paralyzed if you let it. The best thing you can do to get over your fear is to recognize it.Identify your fear. Figure out what it is that’s holding you back.I’m convinced that deep down everyone’s biggest fear is fear of failure. Failure means that you didn’t get what you wanted. It means you flopped. Failure means you fell flat on your face, and you’re not sure you want to get back up.The thing about failure is that you only fail when you stop trying. As long as you keep getting back up on your feet, you’re not failing. You’re doing exactly what is necessary to succeed.The best thing you can do when you're scared is to do it anyway. As scary as something may be, it’s way less scary when you do it.Use a countdown if it helps you. Countback from 10 and when the time is up, take the leap and do the thing.Or use the popularized 5–4–3–2–1 method by Mel Robbins. Don’t give yourself any reason to back down. That means not giving yourself the chance to say no.Take a deep breath, count back from 10 or 5, and once the time is out, start. No excuses. No stopping. Just do it.
Not as rational as you think
When you’re afraid, you think it’s the end of the world. You sensationalize things and think they will turn out way worse than they will. It’s a way of protecting yourself.You think up outrageous scenarios, thinking that’s what you’ll have to deal with when it’s not. You come up with the worst-case scenario. Often, it never happens that way.Look for opposing evidence. Other people before you have dealt with the same fear. Research how they did it. They overcame their fear, so why can’t you? You can absolutely get over the fear. It’s a matter of having the right tools and support.Recognize patterns and triggers. When you find yourself facing fear, identify what triggered it. What was it that made you scared? When you can recognize patterns and triggers, you can work to overcome them.
Methods to get through your fear
There are a handful of ways you can confront your fear before facing it head-on. This will ease your nerves and give you confidence going in.
- Visualization
- Affirmations
- Talk to yourself in the mirror/video
You’ve been using visualization to imagine the worst. Now use it to imagine the best. Imagine what would happen if everything went right. If you have hang-ups, come up with solutions as to how you would solve them.Even in the worst-case scenario, you can be prepared. Go through in your mind what you would do.You can even use affirmations. Find or come up with affirmations designed to face your fears. Repeat them to yourself as much as you can. Even if you don’t fully believe it at first, humans are susceptible to repetition. The more you say it, the more likely you are to start believing it.Say to yourself, “I’ve got this.” Or maybe try another variation.
- I can handle anything thrown at me.
- I can face my fears.
- My fears can’t control me.
- I can do anything I set my mind to.
As you repeat it more, it will become more real to you. You can even repeat it to yourself in the mirror. Or take a video of yourself speaking it.When you speak it out in the world, you speak your fears out of existence.
Find a support group
Lastly, consider joining a group. You can find a support group, or an accountability partner, that will support you in your endeavors.Being part of a group helps because then you’re not facing it alone. You have others that have your back and will help you through it.Having another person going through it with you will give you both the courage to push through it. For one, the other person is counting on you to get through it. Second, if they can do it, so can you. You can get through anything.The support of a community will help you stand up to your fears. They’ll be right there alongside you as you do it.
Final thoughts
You’re always going to have fear, but you don’t have to let it get the best of you. With the right tools and resources, you can get through anything.Your fear doesn’t have to rule you. You can rule your fear. You can do that by
- Acknowledging your fear
- Using a countdown
- Looking for opposing evidence
- Visualizing better outcomes
- Finding support
Take back control of your life and don’t let fear win.
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