It is very natural to feel afraid about starting a business.
An average person might have a stable job, great pay, vacations, and a social life. When you become an entrepreneur things change: you realize that you have to work long hours, you have less time for family and friends, the future looks uncertain, and it might be years before you get paid for the work you put into your business.
There are many kinds of fears associated with entrepreneurship: fear of failure, fear of being wrong, fear of loosing face, fear of running out of money, fear of not being good enough, fear of the unknown, risk, change, discomfort, etc.
http://www.newmarkstudios.com/blog/fear-of-the-unknown
When we do our jobs well, it often owes to the fact that we are experienced in that particular area of work, have had a great boss/mentor, or a sound strategy to follow. Starting a business is unlike any job you’ve had. It starts as just an idea in the mind, no one can tell you if you’re right or wrong, the strategy constantly changes, and at the very beginning it’s often only the founders who believe that the idea will fly. Many first time entrepreneurs take a risk without having a clear idea of how to make their idea succeed. The prospect of this is terrifying to many.
Some fears are real, but most are imaginary. They are just limiting believes that we impose on ourselves that stop us from doing the things we are actually capable of doing. When faced with the fear of unknown and what lies on the other side of it, people try to overcome the fear by over-analysing the situation. People often begin to rationalise with themselves and come up with excuses about how they are not the right person for the job, or that they need to wait for the perfect moment, etc. This can only lead to procrastination or a failure to launch. Have you ever told yourself that you’re not good enough? My skills are not good enough. I don’t have enough knowledge. I don’t have enough experience. I don’t have enough money. I am not creative enough. I am not smart enough.
How often do we do this to ourselves? How often do we over complicate simple life goals with millions of excuses, because we are afraid to take action?!
I would like to know if you have ever given yourself any excuses that stopped you from doing something you love.
In the meantime, stay tuned for the next part, where I will be sharing the story of how I struggled when my brain kept producing millions of excuses while I was faced with the critical challenge of making a life decision.