Whatever “good reasons” you may have for not fully embracing your Soul Purpose, not marketing yourself, not creating that next financial breakthrough, not increasing your rates, not having the time to invest in your business, not hiring support, not investing in a business coach or mentor … it all boils down to fear.
Here’s the two big fears that seem to be at the root of everything that holds us back:
1. Fear of failure.
2. Fear of what other people will think.
It always comes back to these two fears.
So let’s resolve these fears once and for all, shall we?
You really, really don’t need to allow these fears to stop you from achieving your heart’s desires. You know why?
They are 100% guaranteed to happen.
Yes, these fears are absolutely going to become your reality.
You will fail. Lots of times. You’re going to make mistakes. Some are going to be small and frustrating and known only to you. Others are going to be highly public, and are going to cost you tons of time, money, and will probably be highly embarrassing to you.
I fail dozens of times each week. From failing to render video into the appropriate format (that one falls into the small and frustrating category) to completely underestimating a training process (horribly time-consuming AND quite public), I fail constantly.
We all do. Heck, if you’re on Ali Brown’s email list, you would have received an elaborate apology email just last week for some sort of debacle that happened during one of her launches. Business is full of failures.
And somehow, in spite of all these failures, we’re all still here. The world keeps turning, the sun keeps rising, and we learn to do it better next time. You’re guaranteed to fail. So we can take that off the list of things that are holding you back, right? Because failure is an inevitable part of creating success.
Let’s tackle the fear that seems to paralyze so many of us – the fear of what other people will think. Because we care so much about what other people will think, don’t we?
Well, I have more good news for you.
Tons of people won’t like you. Many will think you’re crazy, under-qualified, won’t agree with what you teach, think of you as undeserving of your success, think of you as “competition,” think you charge too much, think you charge too little, think you over-deliver, think you under-deliver, think that you’re only in it for the money, see you as a fraud, or simply not like the way you talk, or dress, or style your hair.
People will judge you. And if you reach out to enough people, you are sure to piss at least a few of them off in a big way.
It’s going to happen. I guarantee it.
You are going to fail, and lots of people will think very negative things about you.
Neither will actually kill you.
You really have to ask yourself whether you want to do your Purpose badly enough. Do you want it enough to accept that there will be failure, and people will judge you?
Perhaps you’re okay with sitting on your death bed, thinking to yourself: “Well, I didn’t accomplish what I wanted. But at least I got here safely, and I didn’t piss too many people off along the way.”
My suggestion is that you go out and fail at something. Seriously. Make a total fool out of yourself, and while you’re at it, make people point and stare. You just may find that you’ve set yourself free.
To your infinite abundance,
Andrrea
Ready to manifest like never before? Join me on Saturday, August 25th for my new free training call, The Three Truths of Manifesting.
Filed under: Embrace Your Highest Path and Purpose • Manifest Money • Manifest Your Desired Outcomes
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Andrrea,
What a great article!
Thank you.
Thanks, Andrea. You are dead right and I need to understand this right now. It applies to so much in life…definitely holding me back in numerous ways.
Jenny
Thank you so much for this wonderful insight.
This is so true especially the “judgment” part. No matter how hard we try, it’s impossible to please everyone. Some people will find a reason to dislike you for almost anything.
Thanks again for this post.
That’s a great way to resolve the issues of fear of disaproval and failure. Fine I’ve head failures, screw ups and delays, and my work has been met with mixed reveiws (at best) of course there has been a funny lesson that lead me to where I am right now and a point you didn’t cover, you can garentee failure and disaproval will happen if you pursue your dream, I can garentee they will happen even if you don’t pursue your dream:
A person can either fail (to get the interview, get the job, get the promotion ect.) and be hated (by the co-worker who isn’t doing as well, by the boss who realizes you might put them out of a job, or for reasons that have nothing to do with your work by people who have nothing to do with your work and so on) doing what they hate, or you can fail and be hated doing what they love.
Haha, so true, esp. I have a feeling I have pissed even more people off by trying to people-please than by doing what I was passionate about!
LOL, Julie – it’s bound to happen, no matter what. So you may as well show up 100% as YOU.
Hey Andrrea –How did you possibly discover my two biggest fears, ha ha? You’re so right on! I especially appreciate what you say about the fear of people not liking us. This will happen anyway — so thanks for reminding us: “So what”???
P.S. I enjoy reading your articles and watching your videos — you have such a Light-hearted approach!
Thanks,
Ann
Ann Barczay Sloan
The Connectrix
Ann – you’re definitely not alone in those two fears!!!
hhahaha. ah, that is strangely relieving…just accepting that the worst really will happen and happens to all of us…is pretty awesome. as “light workers” i think we’ve tended to think that only good things are allowed to happen otherwise we are not “on the right path” and that “bad” things (such as failure or ridicule) are a sign that we are “not on the right path” when really…we are on the perfect path
Thank you so much. Total acknowledgement and permission are amazing ways to shift and release the hold these fears had on me. I literally felt an internal shift. Voila!
Andrea,
Sometimes I feel a tinge of my old non confident pattern. Most days shinning so brightly, occasionally feeling a bit dull, just like the moon waxes and wanes. Today happened to be one of those dull times. Then as usual Spirit guided me to see your supportive message. Clearly, I temporarily had my Awareness clouded by my own fear, because I know there are only 2 paths to travel; Fear or Love each representing what you teach Contraction or Expansion.
Thank you for your timely words of wisdom! You not only walk the talk, your heart felt talk supports others walking the path you know so well.