Learning how to get rid of the fear of failure is critical for change makers! It is one of the main blocks that hold most entrepreneurs back and a source of severe self sabotage. I find it even more heartbreaking when it keeps activists, sustainable entrepreneurs and conscious human beings from experiencing a prideful life and from serving our planet and its inhabitants.
Let’s face it, we very much need the (true) leaders of our world to shake our world upside down and I bet that you are here because you are one of those leaders. So listen up! Fear of failure not only keeps you from living your best life, but it also prevents you from building that brighter future you wanna see.
How can you start an NGO if you fear you’re gonna fail?
How can you build a sustainable business if you fear you’re gonna fail?
And how can you find and follow your purpose if you fear you’re gonna fail?
Now that you can see that knowing How To Get Rid Of The Fear Of Failure As A Changemaker is important, I want you to note that being scared is absolutely normal. I have been there and I had held back for years because falling on my face was scary!
After doing tons of mindset work, I realized that during all those years, I failed my people, I failed my community and I failed my planet. Of course, I did fail on my face a few times… and you know what? It was never as painful as I thought it would be. Am I still scared sometimes? I am! But I can feel the fear and do it anyway.
I know that after reading that blog post, you’d be ready to do the same!
What Is The Fear Of Failure?
“The fear of failure, which is sometimes referred to as atychiphobia, is an irrational and persistent fear of failing.” (Source)
It is very difficult to handle because it messes up with your inner state by generating stress and anxiety. It also has radical consequences because if you do not control this fear and that you let it hold you back, you are unable to take actions towards your desires.
Unfortunately, most people tend to transform the fear of failure to the enemy, as if you needed to win against this big thing within yourself. Let me tell you that each time you start fighting a part of yourself (an emotion of yours in that particular case), you add a layer of resistance and it is harder to overcome.
The fear of failure, like any of your fears, has an agenda for you, it has been helping you in some way. It protects you from trying new things and hoping for more so you can still esteem yourself, so you can still be loved, so you can still be accepted, so you can stay safe depending on your deeply ingrained and unconscious definition of what is safe.
Can you see my point?!! So here are 3 ways to elevate the fear of failure.
1) Separate Your Self-worth From Your Actions & Results
You are not what you do and if this is hard to believe, take a deeper look. Your value doesn’t depend on how successful your fundraising is, nor on how many petitions you sign.
Of course, I want your activist journey to be as rich and successful as possible but your results don’t define you. They are feedback about how you implement things, not about your very own self.
Being proud of your results and of what you do is obviously important to build a healthy ego structure. But when you give too much value to your accomplishments, your self love is conditional. If there is one person that you should love unconditionally, it’s you!
Investing time & money in learning to love yourself and hold yourself no matter what is so worth it. I promise.
2) Add More Joy Fun Into The Journey
Your fight is oh so serious and the world situation may be seen as oh so dramatic… I know. There is another thing I am sure about. If you want this tension to be more bearable and if you want to keep moving without suffocating, you have to add more fun in your daily life and in your fight.
See the whole thing as a game where you get to make the most of it, despite who wins. Have a blast, grow as much as you can. You can never fail if the aim is to grow.
So let me ask, how can you move forward the goal while ALSO enjoying where you are now? Make time for play! If you need some ideas to add more joy into your life, this blog post is a great start!
3) Always Check On Your Mindset & Learn How To Get Rid Of The Fear Of Failure
Your mind, just like mine, is a monkey that tells you lies after lies. It’s ok! It’s a beautiful monkey who deserves your compassion. But be aware that this monkey is very talented at telling you all that you CAN’T, SHOULD NOT, SHOULD do. All that is WRONG with you and all that you can do BETTER.
So watch that monkey! Enquire all its stories and feed the bananas to the good one (aka: the empowering stories and self beliefs).
I wanna see you bring your wildest projects to protect our world to life my love so don’t let the fear of failure hold you back.
I hope that this blog post on How To Get Rid Of The Fear Of Failure was useful and I suggest that you pick one of the three previous ideas and start implementing now. Don’t forget that if the fear of failure has been driving your life for the past years, it will take time, energy and practice to accept it and to take actions anyway.
If you’d like to be coached on your fear of failure so you can finally be free, build your life in a way that nourishes you while creating change in the world, I would love to hear from you. Learn more about how coaching can help you and my offers here!
Written by Marine Leclerc
Cover photo de Ehimetalor Akhere Unuabona sur Unsplash
