When Fear Shows Up in Business
What a family camping trip taught me about facing fear head on - and how you can do the same in your business
Last week, I took a break and headed to the beautiful Yorkshire coast with my husband and daughter for a much needed staycation. It’s one of my favourite places to go - a place where the mountains meet the sea and you really do get the best of both worlds.
But it wasn’t Instaperfect by any means as the above photo might suggest. No way. And I’m not one to pretend that it was. In fact, it was quite a challenge at times (to put it mildly) as we navigated our 5 year old’s anxieties of the unknown which pushed our patience - and marriage - to it’s very limits.
You see, our little family is an eclectic mix of neurodiverse personalities but we do have one thing in common: we’re all stubborn buggers. And that means that we face our fears head on. Because if there’s something we really want to do, but we’re scared for whatever reason, we help and support each other to find the strength within us to do it.
And each one of us conquered a fear on our trip last week.
My daughter rode a bus for the very first time having refused previously due to her fear of unfamiliar sounds and sensations.
My security conscious husband slept soundly in a tent with no lock and overcame his fear of someone breaking in and stealing our car keys/money/kid.
And me? I faced my fear of camping. Something I said I could never, ever do. The wilderness. Bugs in my tent. Shared toilets. No kettle. Yep, I embraced it all. And I actually kind of enjoyed it.
And that’s the thing about fears - they are never as scary as you think they are going to be.
Do you know what the 2 most common words I hear from small business owners on a daily basis?? ‘I’m scared’.
And the 3 most common things that they are scared of?
1.Fear of the Unknown
2. Fear of Failure
3. Fear of Success (yes this is a legitimate fear and I explain why in Wednesday’s podcast episode).
This week we are tackling your business fears head on. I’m talking all about those 3 things I’ve just mentioned on my podcast. We’re looking at what they are and how they present themselves in us small business owners and, most importantly, how to stop letting them get in the way of your success.
And I’m not talking fancy techniques or breathing exercises or expensive therapy. Just plain and simple things you can do to bat away that fear when it creeps in and tries to kibosh your business dreams.
The episode ‘I'm Scared’: An Entrepreneur's 3 Biggest Business Fears (and How to Beat Them)’ is out on Wednesday 4th June - become a free subscriber to my Substack and you’ll get it delivered to your inbox as soon as it’s released!
And for my paid subscribers, you’ll be getting an exclusive printable worksheet dropping into your inbox on Friday designed to help you unpack your biggest business fears and work through what’s holding you back. It’s full of practical prompts to support real progress and to ultimately help you take one small, brave step forward.
My daughter is now telling every man and his dog that she’s been on a bus. And I couldn’t be prouder of her.
“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself “
Franklin Roosevelt
Joanne
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