Your Fear Isn’t Going Away
If I read one more email about stuffing away your nervousness or eliminating your fear, I’m going to scream. If I see another thing that says FEAR doesn’t really mean anything and all you have to do is avoid it – I might just strangle someone…
I’ve had it up to here with people saying that we can make fear, anxiety and discomfort go away forever. It’s just not true.
Not if you are up-leveling every year, growing beyond your comfort zone and facing all the things that scare you.
Not if you are significantly increasing your income each year.
If you are up-leveling and growing your income – then fear, discomfort, anxiety or nervousness (or all of the above) will be your new best friends.
And yes, you can do things to lessen their impact, to reduce the resistance, to make it easier. But the discomfort will still be there.
As an entrepreneur you face one challenge after another. First it might be doing a sales conversation. Then, it might be wrangling your numbers with an accountant and bookkeeper. Next, it might be your first client who backs out of a contract. Then it might be your first big event.
And the faster you are growing the more challenges you will face that bring up your fears (and the more rewards!).
The truth is not that you must “eliminate” them or “avoid “them.
Honestly – I know no method out there – EFT, NLP, or ABC – anything that gets rid of these emotions (not permanently at least). In fact I’m not entirely sure we should eliminate or avoid them – these emotions are simply alerts that we are growing, expanding past our comfort zones. They are growing pains. And walking through them leads to great rewards!
I think we have to create a relationship with our Fear, our Anxiety, our Nerves. We need to create a relationship where we recognize that fear is a “normal” part of who we are as extraordinary entrepreneurs – and take down the resistance to it.
The good news is that every challenge you encounter has two sides. The fear side – how you feel when you walk into it. Then the joy side – how you feel once you understand it and have walked straight through it. As entrepreneurs we are always facing the fear side of something and hopefully walking through the joy side of something else.
I know I experience this fear every single year that I’ve been in business. First it was around selling, then it was events, now it’s around team. As I grow my challenges evolve.
And after a while it becomes oddly comfortable to be uncomfortable. I’ve met many an entrepreneur who says that if she doesn’t wake up with some amount of fear – it means she’s growing too slowly and not taking enough risks.
Now I’m not saying you have to be in fear all the time or take risks all the time – I think we all need busy times and slower times. But I do think that all this talk about eliminating your nerves and avoiding your fears is not leading us in the right direction.
I say walk straight towards your fear and give it a shake. Then walk straight through it. What you’ll find on the other side is pure joy.
Leave me a comment and let me know what you think. I know this one is controversial – so let me know your opinion.
