In this article, you’ll find 3 questions that will help you tackle a fear of failure.

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I bet it’s happened to you, too. After the first exhilarating moment when you were brimming over with excitement about a new idea, challenge or situation, little by little you found your enthusiasm giving way to doubt and hesitation.

Questions like ‘what if it doesn’t go well?’ And ‘what if I don’t succeed?’ started to pop into your mind.

This is called fear of failure. It makes you feel insignificant and robs you of all your self-assurance.

I can tell you right now that very often, this fear is completely unfounded. Where’s the proof you’re going to fail? Usually, there isn’t any. It’s nothing but a fear. But how many times have you let this feeling get the better of you and stop you from moving forwards? How many important opportunities have you missed out on because you thought you might fail?

Enough is enough – it’s time to face up to this fear. Let’s see how to do it with these 3 simple questions.

1. What would I do if I knew I couldn’t fail?

This question may make you feel uncomfortable. As soon as you catch a glimpse of the actions you’d take and the results you’d achieve if you weren’t afraid of failing, you realize that the scariest of situations hold a huge amount of potential.

Once you’re aware of this, whole new avenues of opportunity open up to you. If you’re faced with an important choice, try to listen to your heart and follow your instincts. If you could get rid of your fear of failure, what would your decision be? What would you do?

Taking small actions – baby steps – is enough for you to move forward. You’ll be closer to your goal before you know it.

2. If I really were to fail, how could I recover?

It’s very helpful to follow a train of thought that keeps you firmly rooted in reality and disrupts the whirlwind of paranoid and unrealistic thoughts that a fear of failure can trigger.

If the worst-case scenario actually happened, what would you do? How could you put things right?

Generally, the answer isn’t as alarming as you think and makes you realize that even in the worst of situations, nothing is truly beyond hope of recovery.

3. What would happen if I did nothing?

When life presents you with a great challenge, or when you’re forced to make an important decision that could affect everything around you, it means you need a change. That’s right, this need for change, whether conscious or not, will lead you into a situation where you can’t help but make a decision.

If your fear of failure is in control and you remain firmly where you are, you’ll be deeply unhappy. So, to beat this fear, it’s helpful to ask yourself:

What would happen if I did nothing? What would the consequences of inaction be?

Instead of moving forward, you’d probably go backwards! Being afraid is normal. Remember that it’s normal to experience fear – it’s entirely humanly. The important things are to recognize it for what it is and not to let it take control. In fact, you can turn it into a friend and ally.

Next time you experience a fear of failure, don’t let it get the better of you. Simply stop for a moment and ask yourself the 3 questions outlined above. They will help you to see clearly and find the resources you need to deal with your fear in the best possible way.

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