It's Time to Stop Fearing Entrepreneurial Success Acknowledge the fear, confront it head on, work hard and succeed in spite of it.
By Kimanzi Constable •
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
There are many fears that we have to overcome to start and grow a successful business that makes money and leads to true freedom. We face self-limiting beliefs within us, the negative voices of others who don't get it and a host of other issues. Each of us has a choice. These fears and difficulties can derail us, or become life lessons that help us become stronger entrepreneurs. Too many people let the pressure keep them from taking the chance to chase their major life and business goals.
There is another fear that isn't talked about enough. That fear is the fear of what happens when you reach your biggest life goals, fulfill a dream, experience a higher level of success. We work so hard to get to where we want to be that we don't think of what it will be like once we move even farther in our entrepreneurial journey.
The fear of success is very real and can hurt us more than all of the others. This fear has us sabotaging what we do because we're afraid to get to our next level, and it's all happening on a subconscious level. There are some things that you should understand in regards to the fear of success and ways to beat this fear.
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You are enough.
I don't know what's happened in your past. I don't know what struggles you're facing in your life right now. I don't know what you still must go through. What I do know is that you are enough. You are special, unique and deserve to be happy. Your past doesn't have to define you. Just because things may not have gone as planned doesn't mean you can't have an amazing future.
I don't know you but I know that you are enough. It's important to your success and time for you to realize that.
You can't even start if you don't believe in yourself and what's possible. If you read blogs, listen to podcasts or watch videos, the importance of taking action hass been pounded into your head but you won't take action if you don't believe it can be done. You can't believe in the goal if you don't believe in yourself. You are enough and are capable of creating magic. This isn't just woo-woo personal development stuff. This is a core belief that you need to establish if you're going to create a successful business.\
Related: 4 Emotional Struggles You Must Confront as an Entrepreneur
You deserve success and happiness.
You're enough and you need to understand that you deserve success and happiness. Life isn't all about business. Freedom is the goal of starting and growing a business. That freedom allows you more time to be in control of what happens in your life. The business generates an income to give you freedom from financial stress. All of this leads to happiness and what success means to you. Don't ever feel like you're the kind of person who can't or doesn't deserve to be happy -- you do and should.
Related: You Could Be Having a Digital Mental Health Crisis Without Even Realizing It
Don't let other people's self-limiting beliefs affect your life.
Some people just don't get it and never will. It may be what happened in their life but they are determined to make others as miserable as they are. They may laugh at your goals and give you 100 reasons why you can't achieve what you want to, but look at the place their advice is coming from.
You have to learn to not care about what other people think and say if you are going to grow a business and become a rockstar entrepreneur. You can't let anyone else's self-limiting beliefs creep into your mind or affect your decisions. This is your journey and it has to be about what's best for you.
Related: Managing Your Mental Health as an Entrepreneur
Enjoy the fruits of your labor.
It takes a lot to be an entrepreneur. You work hard to do what other people can't understand. You have a vision and you take action. Once you have overcome self-limiting beliefs and the fear of success, enjoy the fruits of your labor.
You've heard the expression, "All work and no play…" It's true. You're not a robot and there's so much more to life than just business. Work hard but play harder. Take trips around the world, enjoy time with friends, be there more for your family. Know that you are enough and deserve enjoyment and excitement in your life. Accept that you've worked hard to get to this place. Enjoy it instead of fearing it will go away.
The fear of success is natural because you're not used to this level in your life. There's a fear you will lose it all or you're waiting for the other shoe to drop. My friend Chaka says to "act like you've been here before." The fear of success can hurt your efforts before you even reach success. Don't let it!
Acknowledge that the fear is there and then confront it head on. Work hard and celebrate what you've accomplished. You deserve to be successful in life and business -- believe it.
