How to Overcome Your Fear of Failure and Unlock Your Potential

We all want to succeed in life and reach our goals, but many of us are held back by a fear of failure. This fear can manifest itself in different ways: we may become anxious when faced with challenging tasks, procrastinate on important tasks, or even avoid taking risks altogether.

But the truth is that fear of failure is something that we can overcome, as these fears are formulated in our minds. By learning to be more mindful and developing the right strategies, we can start to unlock our potential and achieve our goals. 🫶

In this blog post, I’ll explore what the fear of failure is and why we have it, as well as share some strategies for overcoming your fear and unlocking your potential.

What is Fear of Failure?

Fear of failure is an emotional response that can arise when we are faced with a task or situation that we believe we may not be able to complete successfully. 😟

This fear can be triggered by a wide range of situations, from taking a test or starting a new job to making an important decision or taking on a new challenge.

When we feel that we may not be able to succeed in a certain task, we can experience a range of emotions including anxiety, fear, and even shame. This fear of failure can be so powerful that it can prevent us from taking risks, trying new things, and achieving our goals. 🙃

Recognising that failure is a normal and necessary part of personal growth and learning is essential. Learning from failures and using them as opportunities for improvement can help individuals cope with and eventually overcome this fear.

It’s important to remember that failure is not a reflection of a person’s worth, but rather a stepping stone on the path to success and personal development.

fear of failure

Reasons You Might Be Afraid of Failure

There are a number of reasons why we might be afraid of failure. One common reason is that we are afraid of disappointing others, especially if they have high expectations of us.

Another reason is that we may be worried about how we will be viewed by others if we fail. 👀

It is also possible that we may have experienced some form of failure in the past and feel that we are not capable of succeeding in the future.

We may also be afraid of failure because we believe that if we fail, we will not be able to move forward and achieve our goals.

Strategies to Overcome the Fear of Failure

Now that we have explored what fear of failure is and why we have it, it’s time to look at some strategies for overcoming it. Here are some tips for tackling your fear of failure and unlocking your potential:

Develop a Growth Mindset

One of the most effective ways to overcome the fear of failure is to develop a growth mindset. This involves looking at failure not as an end, but as an opportunity to learn and grow.

A growth mindset encourages us to take risks, embrace challenges, and look for ways to improve. It allows us to view failure as a learning experience and an opportunity to become better. 🤗

Take a look at our Personal Growth Bundle to find out more.

Visualise Success

Visualising success can be a powerful tool for overcoming fear of failure. Visualising ourselves succeeding can help us to be more confident, reduce anxiety, and take the first steps towards achieving our goals.

It is important to remember that visualising success does not mean that you will definitely succeed, but it can help you to build the confidence and motivation to take risks and move forward. 😀

To help with visualisation it would help to have a vision board. You can do this year by year or have an overview of the life you are trying to create. – Pinterest would be a great place to start with ideas.

fear of failure

Break Your Goals Into Smaller Steps

When we have a goal that we want to achieve, it can often seem like an insurmountable task. This can be overwhelming and can lead to fear of failure.

To help combat this fear, it is important to break your goals into smaller, achievable steps. This can help to make the task seem more manageable and reduce the fear of failure. 😊

Want to become a master at setting goals? Check out our mini-course: How to Set Goals and Achieve Them

Accept That Failure is Part of the Process

It is important to remember that failure is part of the process of achieving your goals. Failure does not mean that you are not capable of achieving success, it either means that you have not found the right path yet or you just need to keep going. 🛣️

Don’t get me wrong, sometimes knowing when to quit and when to keep going can be hard. You have to think to yourself, am I going to regret this? or is this the best decision I can make for myself right now?

Accepting that failure is part of the process can help you to stay motivated and keep trying. It can also help to reduce the fear of failure and give you the confidence to take risks and try new things. 😊

Reach Out for Support

Reaching out for support can be a powerful tool for overcoming fear of failure. Talking to family, friends, and mentors can help to remind us that we are not alone and that there are people in our lives who are willing to help us. All you have to do is ask! 🗣️

Having a supportive network can also provide us with encouragement and motivation to keep going, even when we feel like giving up.

Celebrate Your Small Wins

It is important to celebrate our small wins and successes, no matter how small they may seem. Celebrating our successes can help to boost our confidence and remind us that we are capable of achieving our goals. Because you are! 🏆

It is also important to remember that failure does not define us; it is a part of the learning process. Acknowledging our successes, no matter how small, can help to keep us motivated and remind us that success is possible.

Conclusion – Unlocking Your Potential

Fear of failure can be a powerful emotion that can hold us back from achieving our goals. But with the right strategies, we can start to overcome our fear and unlock our potential.

By developing a growth mindset, visualising success, breaking our goals into smaller steps, accepting that failure is part of the process, reaching out for support, and celebrating our small wins, we can start to move forward and achieve our goals. 🎯

So don’t let your fear of failure stand in the way of your success. Start to take small steps today and unlock your potential!

Pin this post for a reminder 📌 👇

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How to overcome your fear and get what you want

What are you scared of? 🤔

We are born with two innate fears: The fear of falling and the fear of loud noises. Both these fears are an instinct necessary for survival.

So! Let’s get started on how to overcome your fear and live your best life.


Storytime!


I personally have a fear of crossing bridges where I can see what’s under me e.g. passing cars, rivers etc. I believe this relates to the innate fear of falling. As my main thought is “omg what if this bridge collapses”. 😬

This fear used to be so bad that I would purposefully take the longest route to avoid going on a bridge or even worse, not go to the location at all if the only option was to get on a bridge.

As you could imagine having a fear like that is totally annoying. It wasn’t until I went to Spain with my sister that my fear subsided.

One day we decided to go to the beach, and to get there we needed to cross this long, thin bridge above a very busy road.


The beach was just on the opposite end of the bridge, all I had to do was just cross it to get there. However I looked at it and thought “ nope, can’t do it. Too long, too thin, no way”.

how to overcome your fears


To be honest with you I don’t even know if I could call this thing a bridge, it was practically a piece of sheet metal.

Nevertheless, I knew my sister was eager to get to the beach and relax in the sun and I didn’t want to get in the way of her enjoying the holiday. She gave me a pep talk and off I went following behind her on the bridge.

I walked as briskly as the sound of cars driving by and horn honking was making my anxiety go through the roof, my heart was pounding out of my chest and my legs were starting to go numb.

I looked down and to my surprise noticed something which made me scream “ OMG THERE ARE BULLET HOLES IN THIS BRIDGE I WANT TO GET OFF” to which my sister replied “Heather shut up it’s not bullet holes” we then argued back and forth over this rackety bridge regarding how these holes got there which completely distracted me to the fact that I was conquering my fear.

Once I stepped off, I felt extremely proud of myself and realised I can conquer any fear if I just “do it”. Sometimes it does take that helping hand of someone pushing you to help you realise your potential, especially if they’re able to help distract you while you’re doing it! 😂

I was prepared to put my fear of crossing the bridge aside as my fear of disappointing my sister was much greater.

how to overcome your fears

^ No, this is not what the bridge looked like but it might as well have!

Heather’s top tip: Surround yourself with people who will push you to overcome the fears holding you back from where you want to go and what you want to do.


Learned fears – Scared of the unknown

The most common fears we experience that sabotage our hope for success is the fear of failure, poverty and loss of money.

These fears cause us to avoid risk and reject opportunity when it is presented. We often spend years chasing opportunity and get comfortable with the chase, so comfortable that it becomes part of our identity.

When the opportunity is within our grasp we freak out and get scared. 😬

This is because of the potential changes the opportunity may bring. If you don’t deal with uncertainty well you’ll most likely create excuses as to why it’s not the right time for you to pursue the opportunity.

Here are a few techniques and tips to help you overcome your fears so you can become limitless


 
The law of reversibility

The law of reversibility says that “If you feel a certain way, you will act in a manner consistent with that feeling”.

So even if you don’t feel like it but act in a manner consistent with that feeling, the law of reversibility will create the feeling that is consistent with your actions.

This is one of the greatest breakthroughs in success psychology. You develop the courage you desire by disciplining yourself to repeatedly do what you fear until that fear eventually disappears.

how to overcome your fears


Every opportunity can be undone


When an opportunity scares us it’s usually because we fear we’ll make a mistake that can ultimately mess up your career, your personal work or just your life in general.

Nonetheless, the majority of opportunities that can come your way will not be life or death decisions. 🤷‍♀️

If an opportunity doesn’t work out, it’s not the end of the world. All it is a minor setback and a learning experience to which you can get back up, dust yourself off and carry on working towards your goal.

Opportunities pursued can just as easily be undone. Yet opportunities avoided are difficult to rediscover.

Is it a fear of failure or a fear of success?


You’re probably thinking “Huh!? Why would I fear success?” but the reality is that success changes our lives more than failure and that thought can be really scary, especially when we’ve spent years becoming comfortable with the current way we live.

To clarify whether it’s a fear of failure or a fear of success you need to know your definitions for both.

Related: QUIZ: What does success mean to you?

Fear of failure often involves self-talk such as: “If I don’t try, I can’t fail” There is safety in standing still, not taking on new challenges or trying new things, all of these things can ultimately lead to “failure”.

Success for someone may be a salary of 500k and someone else may define success as a strong and happy marriage.

What is your definition of success?
What is your definition of failure?

Will Smith Reaction GIF

Confront your fears immediately


When you identify fear and discipline yourself to move toward it and confront it, it grows smaller and more manageable.

The natural tendency of many people is to deny that they have a problem caused by fear of some kind. They’re afraid of confronting it which results in major stress, unhappiness and psychosomatic illness.


When you force to tackle your fear head on your self-esteem goes up, your self-respect increases and your sense of personal pride grows. 😁

RELATED: Getting out of your comfort zone mini-course

In Summary…

Fear immobilizes and prevents us from achieving what we desire and what we are capable of. Don’t let fear kill your hustle before you even get started.

Understand your fear and embrace it. Fear exists to keep us safe, it is not inherently bad or good but a tool we can use to make better decisions in life.

These tips are my top ways on how to overcome your fear and get what you want!

What methods have you used successfully to overcome your fears? Let me know in the comments 🙂

Pin this post for a reminder 📌 👇

how to overcome your fear



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