Fear: The Major Cause of Failure

 

 

 

The biggest reason most people don’t succeed at whatever they attempt isn’t because they didn’t try.  It isn’t the economy.  It isn’t lack of funds.  It isn’t even lack of knowledge.

 

The biggest reason most people fail is fear.

 

Fear comes in many different types.  Fear of failure.  Fear of success.  Fear of looking foolish.  Fear of the unknown.

 

Fear is not always apparent.  It can be hidden deep in our subconscious, influencing our decisions without our conscious knowledge.

 

Fear can disguise itself as many different things.

 

It can be the nagging voice in the back of your mind that whispers, “Why are you doing this?  You know it isn’t going to work”

 

It can be the urge to go fishing instead of working on a difficult project.

 

It can be a general feeling of malaise, of feeling that you really don’t want to do anything.

 

However it manifests itself in your life, it will rob you of success if you let it.

 

If you want to succeed, you must conquer fear.

 

That doesn’t mean that you can remove all fear from your life – nor would you want to do so.  There is a time and place for fear.  For example:  when a situation is life threatening.  The rest of the time, it is simply a hindrance to living a full, complete and successful life.

 

What should you do if fear is stopping you from succeeding?  You must learn to work through your fears and not let them rule you.

 

How do you do this?  The first step is recognition.  Identifying the fear is half the battle.  When you have a task to do, and don’t want to do it, or keep putting it off, ask yourself, “What am I afraid of?”  The answer may surprise you.

 

Next, you must make a conscious effort to work through it.  This means that if you are afraid of completing a task for fear that the next one may be more difficult and that you may not be able to do it, you need to work on your confidence.

 

Make yourself a sign that says, “Whatever the situation, no matter what happens, I can handle it!” and post it in a place that you will see several times a day.

 

Another good reminder is, “If it’s not life threatening, it’s not worth worrying about!”

 

Simply reading these statements several times a day will put you on the path to more self-confidence.

 

Some fears can be confronted head-on.  If you are afraid of meeting new people, make a plan to deliberately meet one new person every week.  After you have met this new person, be sure to ask yourself, “That wasn’t so bad, was it?”  The answer is almost certain to be a resounding “No!”  After a while, you will begin to see that you had been depriving yourself of the company of some very interesting people before you conquered this fear.  And you will be glad that it no longer rules your life.

 

Each time you confront a fear and conquer it, your confidence will build.  The more you practice these fear-banishing techniques, the more confident you will become.  And the more confident you become, the more likely you are to succeed at whatever you choose to do.