How to Overcome the Fear of Failure

Are you afraid of failure? If yes, then this blog is for you. It will teach you how to recognize fear, understand and overcome it, and finally achieve the life you always wanted!

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Do you know how to overcome your fear of failure?

Atychiphobia – it is the irrational fear of failure.

Perhaps, you don’t have this kind of phobia, but there are a lot of people who are afraid of doing new things, simply because they don’t want to fail. However, when you let fear hold you back, you are actually preventing yourself from fully enjoying life and even achieving your full potential.

In this post, you will learn:

  • How to accept your fear
  • What are the causes of fear of failure
  • The real meaning of failure
  • Reasons you should not fear failure
  • How to overcome the fear of failure
  • Power motivational quotes about overcoming the fear of failure
  • Key takeaways

If you want to become the person you always wanted to be, then you need to overcome the fear of failure. Discover how to achieve this through this blog post.

Read on to learn more!

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Accept your fear

The first thing you need to do to overcome your fear of failure is to recognize and accept that it’s real. In most cases, people deny their fear and because of this, they would rather turn a blind eye and don’t do anything about their problem.

That’s the least of the things you want to happen. If you are determined to make a change in your life, you would need to first accept the fact that you have fear of failure and from there, you can start taking the steps of overcoming it.

What are the causes of your fear?

It is worth noting that fear is a natural human response to the unknown. How we handle them is what makes the difference. Of course, there is fear that allows you to stay safe and there is also fear that is just irrational and unreasonable.

It is understandable for people to be fearful of failure. Especially if you consider the high percentage of people failing the first time they try something new.

For example, consider this; according to the BLS or Bureau of Labor Statistics of the US, about 50% of small business fail within five years. In ten years’ time, only 4% of those businesses survive.

These statistical figures are enough to make a lot of aspiring entrepreneurs stop on their track.

So, in your case, you need to identify what’s causing you to fear failure. From there, you should be able to identify the basic steps of what makes you fearful.

If you are afraid because you don’t know what lies ahead, then do your independent research. Gather as much information as possible to decrease the risk of failure. When you have a better understanding of what you want to accomplish and how to get there, you should be able to overcome your fear.

Sometimes, fear of failure happens due to unsupportive loved ones, parents, and spouse. It could be caused by past experiences that make you feel inferior and be doubtful of your own abilities.

Once you know what causes your fear, you will now have a better way to deal with it.

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What does failure mean to you?

Sometimes, you are afraid of failure simply because you have a wrong definition of failure.

The best thing about failure is that its definition is subjective. By changing the way you perceive failure, you will be able to change the way you work or think.

You can either see failures as the ultimate end of your life or you can use it as proof that you are doing something worthwhile that it takes a lot of effort to accomplish.

You can let failure to define you or let it serve as an incredible learning experience that will improve yourself both now and in the future.

It is not how you fail, but how you grow throughout the experience.

Think about it for a second: some of the most successful people in this life are people who have failed BIG TIME!

Think about Michael Jordan who was cut from his high school basketball team.

Think about Warren Buffet who was rejected by Harvard University.

Think about Richard Branson who is a high-school dropout.

Or Soichiro Honda who spent all his fortune to build a piston ring only being rejected by Toyota.

Now, if those people let their failures to stop them from doing what they want in life, then I’m sure we wouldn’t see the greatest basketball player in the world or some of the most successful entrepreneurs who built a huge multi-million empires!

What are the reasons why you should not fear failure?

Believe me; we will all fail in some points in our lives.

No one is exempted.

Thus, instead of dreading failure, why not just enjoy the struggle? Whether you fail or succeed, the important thing is that you tried and learned something from your experience.

To further motivate you to stop fearing and start working, here are some reasons you should not be afraid of failure:

  • Failure teaches you life’s most awesome lessons.
  • Successful people fail first before they succeed.
  • Failure shows you how strong you can be.
  • Failure makes you tougher.
  • Failure helps you understand other people who are going through the same problem.
  • Failure teaches you to be humble.
  • Failure promotes growth.
  • Failure is a normal part of life.
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How to overcome your fear of failure?

There are different ways to overcome your fear of failure. It really comes down to your unique situation. Like what was mentioned above, be sure to identify first what causes your fear and from there, you can work on a plan to overcome your fear.

However, just to give you some ideas to help you start overcoming this type of fear, you might want to check out these tips:

  • Analyze your situation. Know potential problems and how to overcome them.
  • Be more positive in your thinking. Encourage yourself that you can do better.
  • Stop worrying about the things that might go wrong. Think of the things that can go right.
  • Set realistic smaller goals that lead eventually to bigger goals.
  • Have a contingency plan in case you fail. Having an alternative plan allows you to be more confident and braver.
  • Think about the rewards. Normally, the more difficult the task, the sweeter is its reward.

It is important to realize that in everything we do, there’s always a chance that we will fail. But don’t forget, there’s also a chance that we will succeed – something we can always look forward to.

Powerful motivational quotes about failure

Don’t let fear paralyze you. Have the right mindset and attitude and you should get to where you wanted to be. To help you see how important it is to never quit after failure and stop being afraid of failing, here are some of the best inspirational overcoming fear of failure quotes:

Quote no. 1:

“Everything you want is on the other side of fear.”  – Jack Canfield

(Read his best-selling book, “The Success Principles: How to Get from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be.”)

The Success Principles

Quote no. 2:

Success is not final; failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts. – Winston Churchill

(Read this best biography of Churchill and be inspired by his life, “Churchill: Walking with Destiny.”)

Churchill Walking with Destiny

Quote no. 3:

“If you learn from defeat, you haven’t really lost.” —Zig Ziglar

(Read Ziglar’s life-changing book about the value of a healthy self-image, “See You at the Top.”)

See You at the Top

Quote no. 4:

“Failure should be our teacher, not our undertaker. Failure is delay, not defeat. It is a temporary detour, not a dead end. Failure is something we can avoid only by saying nothing, doing nothing, and being nothing.” – Denis Waitley

(Read Waitley’s book, “The Psychology of Winning.”)

The Psychology of Winning

Quote no. 5:

“Winners are not afraid of losing. But losers are. Failure is part of the process of success. People who avoid failure also avoid success.” – Robert T. Kiyosaki

(Read Kiyosaki’s most popular book of all time, “Rich Dad Poor Dad: What The Rich Teach Their Kids About Money – That The Poor And Middle Class Do Not!”)

Rich Dad Poor Dad

Quote no. 6:

“I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots and lost almost 300 games. 26 times I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” – Michael Jordan

(Read the most widely read biography of Jordan, “Salt In His Shoes: Michael Jordan in Pursuit of a Dream.”)

Salt In His Shoes

Quote no. 7:

“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” —Thomas A. Edison

(Want to know more about one of the most brilliant minds in history? Read, “Timeless Thomas: How Thomas Edison Changed Our Lives.”)

Timeless Thomas

Quote no. 8:

“Those who dare to fail miserably can achieve greatly.” – John F. Kennedy

(Read Kennedy’s most popular book, “Profiles in Courage.” In this book, Kennedy chose eight of his historical colleagues to profile for their acts of astounding integrity in the face of overwhelming opposition.

Profiles in Courage

Quote no. 9:

“Failure is success in progress.” – Albert Einstein

(Do you want to know more about the man behind the name, Albert Einstein? If yes, be prepared to discover his life’s greatest stories in this book, “Einstein: His Life and Universe.”)

Einstein His Life and Universe

Quote no. 10:

“Success is measured by how high you bounce when you hit bottom” – General George S. Patton

(General George S. Patton, Jr. died under mysterious circumstances in the months following the end of World War II. For almost seventy years, there has been a suspicion that his death was not an accident–and may very well have been an act of assassination. Read more about his life and death in this book, Killing Patton: The Strange Death of World War II’s Most Audacious General.)

Killing Patton

Key takeaways

Sometimes, what stands between you and your goals is the fear of failure. If you let fear to cripple and paralyze you, you might miss out on the successes in life that you are destined to accomplish.

Instead of fear, why not understand better your fear? In most cases, you are just afraid because you don’t know what lies ahead. The moment you have more information through research and analysis, you can easily dispel that fear and move forward.

With that being said, I hope that you bravely take one step at a time – slowly but surely – you will achieve your goals in life!


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