Fear and Stress, Actually a Motivator to Take Action, A Motivator for Entrepreneurship!

When I have been presented with my biggest opportunities in life, and threats; I have been fearful and stressed. That’s normal. But far from being afraid of fear and stress, we need to embrace them as they are our biggest motivators and spur us on to action. As the song says. “What doesn’t kill us, makes us stronger.” 

In business I was offered an opportunity to invest in a business I knew nothing about. I was scared, I was stressed, I was fearful of failure and of losing my money. But it led to my biggest success. Paramount Fine Foods. Don’t be afraid of fear and stress, harness them, use them, embrace them, for they can be your most important catalysts to success.  

Fear is an emotional state brought on by a foreseen apparent risk or danger causing us to react either by flight, fight or freezing. It’s a basic response to help us act accordingly a million years ago in the jungle. And it still helps us respond accordingly today. 

  ?  Flight: We escape the issue causing us stress.

  ?  Freeze: We remain stagnant. We don’t take action, even though we want it.   

  ?  Fight: We push ourselves to face our fears and exercise our inner willpower to control our fate and take action. 

Fear is just a feeling, and yet it can paralyze us or push us to work harder.  When pursuing entrepreneurship, know you will experience this feeling before you start and continue to, even after having a successful business for years. Entrepreneurship comes with much uncertainty, so it’s very natural for fear to arise.  

The angst started appearing for me the moment I decided I wanted to be an entrepreneur but particularly when I was presented with this investment opportunity, in a business, the restaurant business, I knew nothing about. Even until this day, the anxiety and the jitters come to me, and I always wonder what could go wrong? But considering risks, what keeps you up at night; is critical if you want to address your risks. This primitive reaction kept us alive in the jungle, it will keep you going in business today. We, entrepreneurs have to shoulder so much responsibility. We are liable to ourselves and others at the end of the day. Failure is not an option. Your mind gets bombarded with the various possible scenarios of your venture’s downfall.  What are you going to do when fear visits you? Will you submit and withdraw? Or not react at all? Or will you fight for your dreams, ideas, and values? Fear showed up at my doorstep when I started out, and it indeed has shaped me to be the person I am today. It made me a fighter; I will fight to defend my goals against all the odds. The reality is we don’t know what the outcome will be; we are only making assumptions. You learn to embrace the fear, and it makes you better. When doubt creeps in, I face it with action, by going out into the world to validate them. I design and build out mechanisms to counteract it. Let fear be the motivator for entrepreneurship, not the barrier - that is my philosophy. You have to be comfortable to put yourself in uncomfortable situations.

How many of you want to launch a business but get affected by fear? What thoughts surface up for you?  

Here are some commons ones that come at me often:

Fear of Failure - Am I wasting my time? What if things don’t work out? Will I miss out on something better? What are my opportunity costs? Launching a business involves time, capital and strong self-confidence. Your time and resources are valuable, and God forbid you to throw it away on something that is not fruitful. That would be devastating, to lose your hard earned money. It’s easier to invest your money in guaranteed low returns on investment.  Many end up taking this road; they take their dreams to the grave. They never try to reach another potential, because it’s all too scary. I found myself multiple times in situations such as this - there was no way out. It was a sink or swim situation for me. A business loan was extended to the original Paramount owner, he defaulted on the loan, and I inherited the business.  I made the choice to grow a nearly bankrupt restaurant to the fastest Middle Eastern Restaurant chain to over 60 locations worldwide. Imagine if, I had let fear dictate my life choices. You need to have a vision, a strategy and a determination to stick with it. 

Reputation Damage - What if I don’t succeed, professionally will people frown upon me? How will people judge my performance? How will I put this on my resume? Will the outcome decline my value? How will this affect my career trajectory? Will future employers be willing to hire me? Can I manage the shame and will I have healthy self-esteem still? We all know successful entrepreneurs, get called upon by other companies and community stakeholders for keynote speeches, job offers, and multiple publicity. We don’t see much of the defeated entrepreneurs in the media regularly getting praised. Generally, the news conveys facts about a company shutting down, and many people are left disappointed especially many dependent employees. This is the negative picture.

On the contrary of what you might think, you can bounce back from the social stigmas and block them. Success has many faces, and even trying out a business venture is a courageous step to take. Remember 1 in every five entrepreneurs fail, the fact that anyone is willing to pursue it is highly commendable. You can share your lessons with others to support their success. Also, as a business owner, you gain an assortment of skills, which you wouldn’t in a defined role as an employee of another company. The skills are transferable to any future job or another business venture. Remember, what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger. Building resilience is one of the keys to surviving all of the inevitable pitfalls ahead of us. 

Financial Security - How will I cover my expenses and those of my business? How will 

I live? Will I dig a deeper hole for myself financially? Can I afford to take a financial risk? Getting a steady paycheque every two weeks is comfortable and less stressful. We are conditioned to aim to receive a stable income here in the West and support our livelihoods with that. Most of us don’t have vast amounts of deposable income to put towards a business. So the fear makes sense. How many of you are happy living a compromised life? If you said NO, good for you! We don’t necessarily have to quit our jobs to launch a business. We can pick an approach that suits our lifestyle. You can still, keep your full-time job, and build out a business on the side. When I arrived in Canada, I had minimal resources. I became a partner in the jewelry business, opting for a lower salary as I didn’t have capital upfront to invest in the company. After a few years, I build the business from 2 locations to 5 profitable locations. You don’t have to risk your livelihood entirely. Be pragmatic and take practical steps. One of my rules is always have two years of safety money in a savings account or GIC. You need Buzz off money. 

Fear of Time Commitment - How much time will I need to invest initially in launching a business? Will I lose the work-life balance I enjoy working as an employee? How will my relationships with family and friends suffer, if I am unable to spend time regularly with them? As I mentioned in my previous article, launching your own business requires more time input than a regular 9 am - 5 pm gig. Many are hesitant to own a business due to the high demand in time and personal sacrifice. I won’t sugar coat things for you, you will have to forgo work-life balance. This doesn’t mean I don’t spend time with family and friends. It’s about choosing quality time over quantity. I cannot carve out a few hours every week. However, I make time for quality meet-ups and the major life events for my loved ones.

Fear of Execution - Will my potential idea make money? How do I execute it? Will my venture sustain after execution? This is a classic example of paralysis by analysis. If you have an idea, we have to get out in the real world to verify it. We don’t know what the results will be until we execute. So, take the first step. Read my article, 10 Ways to validate a business idea, to get a better understanding of how to implement. But simply, I think you need a vision, a strategy, a team and then a lot of very hard work and determination. 

Fear of Unknown - What will happen in the future? Will, I make money or not? Do customers want this? How do I control the situation? The lack of control for many is frustrating, and for this reason, many don’t even charter this sea. Agreed, it can be debilitating. However, through perseverance and self-confidence, we can achieve the impossible. Think of uncertainty as a driver: the unknown makes you work harder. You strive to learn more, to ensure that all bases are covered for things that arise. When we can’t predict the future, we create multiple solutions for all the possibilities, in order to ensure success. I strongly believe that the best opportunities are in the Blue Oceans where there is no competition rather than the Red Oceans filled with competition. Too often people launch businesses in the Red Oceans because they know who the customers are, who the competitors are, what the market share positions are etc. But it’s the Blue Oceans, where there is no information available, where the biggest opportunities are. Remember the line, “If Henry Ford had listened to his customers, he would have built a faster horse.”

These are the most commons fears I hear from people. Even though I have highlighted the positives of each common worry, I know it’s not enough to convince you. So next I will share with you my 3 step system for managing fear. Stop, think, take action.  

1. Stop and calm down – Fear and stress cause immediate reaction. That’s good because its your body triggering you to an event that needs to be addressed. But don’t overreact. Be vigilant. Calm down. Evaluate the situation, consider the options, put together a strategy. And the most important thing is to remember what your original intention or vision was. Don’t be deterred from your goals. 

2. Think, access your team and Seek Mentors - When you are on this journey, you will need support on a long-term basis. The fears will always change faces and come at you in different directions.  Surround yourself with a strong team and knowledgeable entrepreneurs who are in the same industry and have years of experience. When the fear arises, turn to them you will be sure to get great insights and find relief from communication.  

3. Take Action / Find Solutions - Every time fear comes to mind, do your due diligence and look for fixes. The concerns are creating problems; they become obstacles. When you solve them, the frightening thoughts go away. The more you exercise this muscle, the better you will get at fighting your demons and succeeding. Grit, Stick-to-it-ness, and resilience are key attributes in entrepreneurship and this journey called Life. 

Now that you have read through them, which one is you? Please share! I would love to know.

Fear can take us in a few different directions. We can go at our goals in full force, neglect them or give up. Throughout my life, I have learned if you get better at identifying the fear triggers, you can overcome them using my 3 step system.