Are you living in fear?

Could you be living in fear within your business? Seems unlikely, right? Well actually many business women fear public speaking, cold calling, networking just for starters. Others procrastinate over accounts or legal matters for fear of getting it wrong, so they do nothing instead.

If you are honest with yourself, is there anything you fear in business? Anything you avoid like you would choose to avoid strolling through a field of over excited bulls in a red dress?

Because if you decide to not deal with these fears then they are obstacles to your success. They are things you are choosing to not have in your arsenal of opportunities for your business success.

So how can you overcome the fear?

Here is your simple 4 step process to overcoming fear so that nothing stands in the way of your success.

1. Fear can start because we create a belief about what it will be like, so challenge your belief. Is it a useful belief? If not, what new belief would give you a positive result? From “I can’t stand in front of all those people and talk” to “I am nervous about standing in front of all those people and talking however I am expert in my profession and it is a great opportunity to share some of my knowledge and ideas.”
2. When you hold a thought that is empowering instead of depilating you need to have a go but before you do. Have you practiced? Have you asked confidentially for feedback? If you do this on area of fear you can build a trust in your ability. Before you put yourself in that environment and you move out of your comfort zone it is imperative you have had an opportunity to do this. In this way you are getting to trust in your ability. Try cold calling a friend (warn them first what you are doing) Get feedback – “what did you like?” What didn’t work?” “How would you say I can improve this?” “Were you genuinely interested?” Remember you want your trusted friend to be honest. It’s lovely if it’s your Nan and she say’s “Well done dear, you sounded great” but how is that really for constructive criticism? How is that really for your opportunity to improve and grow?
3. Practice, Practice, Practice and then just for luck, practice again – every time you practice you are reinforcing your inner belief in your ability to do it. The “I can do that attitude” I call it the Catherine Tate attitude – watch this to find out why – http://www.youtube.com/user/BWNcouk#p/f/12/xfpBEHWxwhw
4. Go for it! Ultimately fear is there because you lack confidence and confidence can only grow from doing it. And once you have done all the back ground work, once you have practiced and are empowered to within an inch of your life, ultimately it comes down to getting on with it. Accept that it may not be perfect the first time; however every time you do it, you will get better and better as long as you follow this simple 4 step process.

 If at any time you don’t feel ready to move on to the next step. Then give yourself a time frame to work on that step for. Do not say I am going to keep working on step 2 until I feel more confident. Remember confidence comes from doing it. So set a realistic time scale to work too. Put in your diary. Give it the same level of attention as you would a new customer. Because if you do not, what are you agreeing to?