Entrepreneurship is a journey that, like most, requires a lot of faith in the uncontrollable. There is so much uncertainty and so much we leave up to faith when we become entrepreneurs. This journey requires an unbounded trust in the Universe and in yourself, a belief that everything will happen as it should when it should. There is so much in this journey that is out of our control, and that’s why so many have a fear of entrepreneurship. It’s a fear of uncertainty, the uncontrollable; it’s a fear of not knowing the outcome or the timeline. But entrepreneurship is also a journey of great self-discovery. It’s an opportunity to make your mark on the world, leaving it better than when you found it. In the conversation of Intentional Living, manifestation, and spiritual alignment, entrepreneurship means creating even the slightest difference in the world.
WHY We have a Fear of Entrepreneurship
Fear, in this context, can be a very subjective term. Do you fear success? Failure? Rejection? In this broader conversation, “fear of entrepreneurship” is an amalgamation of all these types of fear brought on by one cumulative doubt that lives in our minds. When we choose entrepreneurship, it’s because we see a different way to approach things; we see a new offering or a unique space that’s not being utilized. We see a way we can offer something different than everyone else. The fear comes from believing that despite you seeing the difference, we wonder if everyone else will too. Fear of success, failure, and rejection becomes one consuming question. “Will I find the right person this product/ offering is for?”
How the Fear of Entrepreneurship Manifests
In almost everything we do, there is an element of risk. Perhaps, to reframe that more positively, there is an element of betting on ourselves. Certain choices or moments in our lives will feel much more “high-stakes” than others, like choosing to become an entrepreneur. When you combine the high stakes with the uncertainty, you’re almost certain to manifest a fear of entrepreneurship. As we venture into this journey, so much is out of our control. And even if you think of yourself as someone who is “go with the flow,” you’re not immune to this fear. It manifests from risk-taking and uncertainty. However, despite the fear seeming scary, it is not a bad thing; it’s a motivator.
How to Heal Your Fear of Entrepreneurship
Fear, like all “negative” emotions we’ve talked about, is critical to the development of our psyche. Feeling fear and understanding what it means lets us distinguish between what we should fear and what not to fear. As we grow older, this is how our fight, flight or freeze instincts develop. Without fear or all “negative” emotions in our toolbox, we wouldn’t be able to understand most things, like success, safety, etc. The first adjustment we must make in our mindset is the belief that fear is bad. All emotions are good to experience; the thing to note is we don’t want to sit in the hard ones for too long. Fear can act as a powerful motivator. And to put yourself in a position to understand your fear and utilize it positively is to put yourself back in a place of power and alignment.
So, how do we heal this fear? When we’re intentional about our lives, our thoughts, and our actions, most things aren’t as they seem beneath the surface. Fear, like all things, is just another tool in our mind to better understand and transform into something else. In entrepreneurship, fear is not something we want to rid ourselves of, but rather heal in a way that transforms into another emotion. There are a few ways you can heal your fears: EFT, but also more typical approaches like finding a mentor or researching other successful entrepreneurs.
EFT around Entrepreneurship
If you don’t already know what EFT is, no problem! You can learn more about EFT by reading this post or listening to my podcast with my EFT practitioner, Valerie Greene, on Apple or Spotify. For those of you familiar with EFT, I’m sure you know the power it has to change your mindset and life. Fear, like all emotions, is completely natural. To heal fear, you want to redirect its energy into a more positive emotion, like motivation. To do this, you must find the connection between fear and what motivates you. If you’re fear specifically manifests around success, how can you redirect that fear into manifesting success?
For example, let’s say you’re an entrepreneur with a start-up offering a new tech platform for women in publishing. Or, perhaps, you’re an entrepreneur of a different sort and writing a book to become an independent author. Let’s say these two people have one very common fear: will people consume my product, be it an app or a book? The fear is all the same. In this situation, EFT would be used to reshape the neural pathway of fear into a belief in success. By using affirmations, tapping, and re-writing scenarios of failure into success, you’re creating a positive outlet for the fear to transform into excitement and motivation.
Transforming Fear into Motivation
In most scenarios, we see fear as a bad thing. We see it as a weakness or an excuse not to move forward. But truthfully, fear can be an incredibly powerful emotion when we overcome it. Fear in entrepreneurship is only a small hurdle to your success; it’s one variable of a much larger picture. When we can leverage our fear into something that motivates us, it becomes something of a power instead of something to hold you back. Greet fear as your friend. It’s an empowering emotion and one that can be transformed into a superpower.
