Overcoming Fear

Susan Clements

Executive Director, E-Myth Benchmark

“If you aren't afraid to fail, then you probably don't care enough about success.” - Mark McCormack

Did you enter your career or start your business with the idea that you would fail? Of course not! You most likely had a combination of hopes and fears, and when the decision making was over, hopes won and fear begrudgingly trailed along on your new journey. Is fear still trailing after you? Take a good look, turn around, and see what fear is doing to you and your ability to succeed.

Fear of making calls, fear of rejection, fear of looking silly or not knowing. Fear that keeps you in your chair instead of out in the community making new connections. Fear interferes with action; it inserts its sinister self right smack in the middle between you and the action you need to take. To get the results you want, your business needs activity and that means you need to take action. Fear is self-generated––a confusing cycle that is a mishmash of real and/or perceived experiences along with a projection of anxieties concerning what might happen in the future. The good news is that you can control fear instead of having fear take over your life.

The key to overcoming fear is to offset it with something that is much more attractive. You need to be passionately connected to your success by knowing what it look likes, feels like, tastes like––you need a vivid image of yourself being successful. When you are connected to an idea, vision or goal of yourself being “successful,” you can shift your energies into the actions that drive you towards that success.

For example, if success to you means you get to golf three days a week, then you need to identify a mini success goal such as treating yourself to a day of golf when you contact 10 clients for a referral. The incentive for you is the day of golf; your reward for accomplishing your mini success goal of asking 10 clients to provide you with referrals. If the fears you have around contacting clients and asking for referrals is overcome by your desire to take a weekday out of the office and golf, you will engage in the actions your business needs from you––in this case, ten conversations with clients in which you ask for a referral. When you break your fears into small bits, they become much more manageable.

To set yourself up to remove fear as a barrier to your success and replace it with the right actions and rewards, follow these six steps:

• Take a sheet of paper and divide it into three columns. From the top left, title the columns RESULT –– ACTION –– BARRIER.

• Under the column labeled Result, make a list of 3 Results or outcomes you and your business should be experiencing, but have not been able to achieve. Don’t rush this step. Once you have selected a result, dwell on it, and examine what it would mean for you if this result was achieved. Visualize your success so you better connect with it.
• Beside each Result, in the column labeled Action, identify the actions or business activities that you should be doing (or others in your business) to achieve the result you have identified. Remember, you don’t have to do everything yourself. Part of facing our fears, as well as being successful, is the ability to ask for help.
• For every action that you have described, identify a fear or Barrier that you think is preventing the action from taking place. Dig deep here and get real; be honest and bold in identifying the barriers or fears you have to engaging in the actions that will lead to your success.
• Compare the result to the actions you have identified. Ask yourself if the result is important enough to you that you will ensure the actions are taken. If the answer is yes, set aside one hour to explore the barriers you have identified and decide what you need to let go of, accomplish, or overcome in order to take the necessary actions to achieve the result. If the answer is no, you shouldn’t be spending your time on this particular result because it’s just not a priority to you.
• Set mini success goals for the Actions you need to accomplish. If one of your fears continues to be a barrier, don’t be afraid to explore your fears with others. Talk to an industry peer or work with a coach to help get a productive perspective and focus on the results you will experience.

Sit down today and tackle your fears head on by creating your listing of Results, Actions, and Barriers. Get reconnected to your success and engage in the actions that will reward you with a successful life!

Susan Clements is Executive Director and co-owner of E-Myth Benchmark, a business coaching company serving businesses in the United States, the Caribbean, Canada, and the UK.  As a business coach Susan has steered client businesses through growth initiatives, sales and marketing strategies, management restructuring, personnel issues, customer service challenges, and action plans for growth and change. Leveraging a personal and professional experience platform of business ownership and management of businesses in both the private and public sector, Susan has designed a revolutionary coach training and delivery system that tools E-Myth Benchmark coaches to actively engage in results based coaching with business owners, leaders and managers leading to greater freedom and flexibility.  E-Myth Benchmark provides E-Myth Mastery Impact™ business coaching, business management and leadership workshops, trainings and seminars.  Contact Susan at www.e-mythcoaching.com or sclements@e-mythcoaching.com.