Discover Your Fears And 3 Ways To Overcome Them

One of the best definitions I have ever heard for the word FEAR is False Expectations Appearing Real.

It goes without saying that starting and running your own business can appear to be a scary undertaking. For some it is horrifying. For many others, it is a thrilling prospect of creativity and opportunity.

Fear can sap your energy and hold you back from making progress in your business. How though, can you discover whether or not fear has a grip on you?

Start by analyzing your habits. When you have an important task to complete, do you have the habit of diving into the work and completing it as soon as possible? Or, do you put the task off for later because you want to make sure that everything you need is in the right order and perfect.

If you tend to put things off by allowing ‘busy work’ and distractions to overwhelm you, it may be that you have the fear of completing tasks. Just thinking about the work that it will take to get a new client, write a few blog posts, or attend a networking event seems exhausting and complicated. This is a prime case of “ready… aim… wait“!

So, what is your excuse for not making progress? Pay attention to the way that you do things (or not) and address the reasons for such. You likely are battling some sort of fear. We have worked with hundreds of Virtual Assistants over the years. Here are a few things that many of our clients, students and community members continue to say:

“Can I really be successful at this?”

“I don’t like to sell myself!”

“But, other people are charging $2 per hour!”

“I just want to have everything in order, first!”

Statements that are similar to these are rooted in fear and you can overcome them in 3 easy ways.

#1 – Clarify What You Want To Accomplish

When it comes to reaching the success that you desire in business, you must gain clarity and get focused.

Clarity is the state of knowing exactly what you want to accomplish even if you do not know how you will do it. As long as you know the what, the how will come. Thomas Edison’s objective was to harness the power of electricity so that you and I could benefit from the use of it in our homes. Did he always know the how? Not quite! This master inventor seemingly failed thousands of times. He was clear about what he wanted. Today, you and I use light bulbs without even thinking about Edison’s focused objective.

#2 – Start Taking Imperfect Action

The next step in overcoming fear is to get into the action habit. Action need not be perfect. It does however, need to keep you progressive. If the fear of failure holds you back from taking imperfect action, it truly is ‘false expectation appearing real’. By not allowing yourself the opportunity to succeed or fail by at least trying, then false expectation has really overtaken you.

Action overcomes fear! Take one small step towards your objective. Build momentum and annihilate fear.

#3 – Review, Re-do, Keep Moving

If Thomas Edison feared failure, you and I would still be picking out candles to light our rooms. Two years from now, do you want to say, “I think I could have done well in business”?

Gain clarity. Take action. Review the work that you have accomplished. If necessary, re-do that which has not yielded the desired outcome. Whatever the case, be sure to keep moving forward. Inaction is equivalent to defeat and failure. Constant motion towards to your purpose will always lead to new ideas, to new activity and to new excitement.

If your Virtual Assistance business is slow because you have false expectations that appear to be real, you can overcome these. Determine what your major objective is in your business. Instead of allowing fear to paralyze your work, take imperfect actions towards your goals. Constantly review your activity. When needed re-do an activity. Always make sure that you keep moving towards the end result that you desire to attain. If you need help to conquer your false expectations, I invite you to join me for free educational and motivational resources.