How You Can Overcome The Fear Factor in Your Business

If you would prefer to listen to the audio version of this article, simply click on the play button below:

I’m going to be totally honest with you here. The one factor at the heart of all entrepreneurial success is not what you know, who you know or even how much money you have but is simply the ability to overcome what I call The Fear Factor.

Yes of course you have to know what to do, such as how to figure out what your niche is and how to market to them, and although it’s not necessary, it helps to have connections in your industry. A lot of money is not required to start, especially if you are launching a coaching, consulting or information product business. Now don’t use this as an excuse to think you’ll never have to invest in yourself to grow your business beyond a certain point. But that’s a topic for a different day. Let’s get back to The Fear Factor.

We all have our fears, in life as well as business. For women entrepreneurs, these fears tend to show up a little differently than men’s, although at their core, they are quite similar.

Let’s take a look at three of the most common fears that may be holding you back from success. Plus, I’ll give you three practical, effective strategies to defeat your personal Fear Factor and show you how transform fear into your most powerful ally!

Before we dive into the three most common fears, let’s review some basic Fear Facts you may have forgotten. Fear is our natural human response to change, to anything unknown. We have a hardwired survival instinct to view any change, in our lives, and by extension, in our businesses, with suspicion, distrust and yes, fear.

Let’s take a closer look at this universal emotion. You have probably heard of this acronym F.E.A.R. = False Evidence Appearing Real. Granted, if you are being threatened with physical harm, such as being confronted by a bear or a fire breaking out in your office building, then by all means take action to remove yourself from these very real threats.

Most business threats though, are just constructions in your mind, stuff you tell yourself when you are facing a new situation, things like: “What if it doesn’t work?”, “What will my clients think?”, and so forth. Pretty soon, your heart is beating fast, you start to sweat and you’ve worried yourself out of taking any action. Sound familiar? I thought so.

Unfortunately, those hard-wired survival responses carry through to decisions about your business as well. Let’s take a look at the three most common success-sabotaging fears we entrepreneurs face and how to overcome them.

Fear Factor #1: Fear of becoming successful - The fear of success sounds almost paradoxical. Why would you be afraid of success? This is why you started your own business in the first place, isn’t it, to have freedom for yourself and your family, make money and live the life you love? If that’s not a good definition of success, I don’t know what it.

Many entrepreneurs, especially women, have a hard time owning this particular fear factor. They say they want to be successful, but then do things at every turn that undermine their success, such as refusing to clear out clutter, missing deadlines or not following up with prospective clients.

The flip side of this fear, and nearly as common as the fear of success, is the fear of failure. If you fear failure, then don’t do anything. You won’t be successful, but at least you haven’t failed because you never even tried.

Fear Factor #2: Fear of becoming someone else – Many women have deeply ingrained negative attitudes about making a lot of money. And no wonder! Our culture is filled with negative stereotypes about those “evil rich people.” Just look at the movies! And our language is filled with examples: dirty money, filthy rich…need I say more?

Fear Factor #3: Not knowing enough – This fear hits women particularly hard. I don’t know enough, I’m not good enough, I don’t have enough experience, I don’t have an advanced degree, I haven’t published a book, I don’t know how to sell (or even more common, I hate to sell!), and on and on and on.

So how can you overcome these fears and transform them into your allies? The first step is to recognize your reactions and reframe them. After all, your heart beating faster is not a sure sign of fear..it also beats faster when you are excited about something.

Be willing to accept your feelings and be grateful that your body is recognizing the situation as a change and is just doing its job in trying to warn you. Then sit back, and reframe the situation into one of excitement, not fear.

The second step is to stop the A.N.Ts, the Automatic Negative Thoughts. If you were to be really conscious of how negatively you talk to yourself all day, you would be shocked. Turn those negative thoughts around to the positive.

Instead of “I’ll never be able to lead a teleseminar and I have no talent for speaking” into “This is my first teleseminar. It’s natural to be a little nervous and this is a great learning opportunity. Even the most experienced teleseminar leader had to start somewhere. I’ll celebrate when I’m done!”

The third step, and the most powerful, is to take immediate action. There is nothing like action to quell the most powerful fears. For example, maybe you have some holes in your marketing education. If so, then take courses that will plug them. Perhaps you feel isolated and alone. Join a business Mastermind group to get support and help to pull you forward.

As women, we are so used to taking care of others; our children, our spouses, our parents, our friends…it can be hard to admit that you can’t go it alone. Look for a Mentor, someone who is doing what you want to do, someone who “speaks your language” and with who you feel a deep resonance. Don’t be afraid to invest in yourself. After all, as an entrepreneur, you are your business.

So remember, the next time you are facing your Fear Factor, recognize it as an opportunity for growth. Reframe, stop the A.N.T.s, and take immediate action. Fear will soon become your greatest ally!