Fear of Failure Prevents Goal Setting
Fanny Snaith
30+ Years as Money and Self Wealth Coach: Merging Mindset Coaching & Money Management | Elevate Your Self-Wealth & Finances | Life and Money Therapist | Expert in Couples Money Coaching | Speaker & Presenter
Jill tells herself that she is not good with money because she doesn’t have clear goals. She says she gets fearful because she isn't sure what to set as her goal - what she actually fears is failing due to her goal feeling like too big of a stretch.
Because she feels that the goal is silly or out of reach, she forgets about it and in turn, turns her back on her money. Rinse and repeat for a few years and now she feels really stuck.
Fear of failure keeps us stuck - just like being up to our waist in quicksand!
If you feel like Jill, let’s see if we can help get this out!
Sit very quietly with yourself and a notebook and pen and try these questions: (take your time and write freely please)
- What does failure look like?
- What is the worst that can happen?
- What about if you were to view failure as an essential step towards success?
- What do you want? - be totally specific and free to be honest with yourself
- What EXACTLY are you scared of?
- When did the fear FIRST appear?
- What is the evidence you have that what you are saying is true?
- What is more important to you - the goal or fear?
- If you said yes to the fear, what are you saying no to?
- If the fear did not exist what would you do?
- What is the worst that can happen?
- What does success mean to you?
- What is the source of how you define success?
- What do you know about how likely you are to succeed?
- What do you really, really want? (yes again)
- What would life be like if you succeeded?
- How would it affect you, your family, others around you?
- What is more important to you - fear or the goal? (yes again)
- What is your answer and why?
- What will it take to release the fear?
- When?
If you give yourself time to answer these, going deeper than you originally thought you would, there should be some great insights that come up for you.
Carrying this fear forward is an option for you. If you want it. If you don’t, looking carefully at what you think and why is the first step to breaking free. You have the power to create the thoughts that you think - it is your choice. We don’t often consider this as life ticks by.
I hope that you will take the time to use these simple questions to help you move away from any fear you have - however small. And guess what, when you have done it for one fear, you can use it again for the next. As we move forward in our lives with courage, new blocks appear along the way. As each block appears - smash it out of the park! Go on - I dare you.
Ending trauma on a global scale one family at a time and it starts with healing ourselves! ??
2 年Very valuable article, thanks for sharing!
Co-Founder at Support Connect, Business Director, Advisor and Consultant
3 年Really good point. I think it can also be a fear of commitment. The fear of having to be 'disciplined' for the rest of your life. It is the same fear that delayed me from stopping smoking for many years. Habits once created - require no discipline. A small mindset shift, but it makes a huge difference.