What Are you Afraid Of?

Do you think it's possible that fear could be the primarysuccessful business endeavor that allowed you to
factor in determining whether or not you succeed inbecome successful could also be causing you some
any given endeavor?anxiety about succeeding financially. Leaving the
I submit to you that it is not only a possibility, but a"comfort zone" that you have known all of your life is
probability. It may seem like there are more "traditional"definitely scary! You may be broke right now, but at
road blocks in your way, but that is very often merelyleast you know where you stand, right?
an appearance, and not the actual reason why peopleOnce again, fear of having to actually do what it takes
fail to attain their dreams.to Succeed could be keeping you from making an
One of the reasons why fear is not seen as the culprithonest effort to have the money that you think you
is because we tend to think of fear in terms of beingwant so very badly!
afraid to fail at something. However, fear ofAnd finally, let's talk about relationships. Who hasn't
SUCCESS is often just as much of a factor, if notbeen afraid of the potential outcome of a relationship
more so.at some point in their life?
Let's look at a few examples in order to illustrate thisOn one hand, the fear of failure is definitely there. You
point:are afraid that the "one" person for you simply doesn't
When it comes to losing weight or getting in shape, areexist. You may be afraid that you will be rejected
you afraid of failure, or are you afraid of success?because you aren't attractive, successful, or
The fear of failure seems fairly evident. You are afraidentertaining enough. Maybe you are afraid that no one
that you will not succeed because you have triedwill want you because you have a disability, children
many times in the past but still haven't seen the resultsfrom a previous marriage, or maybe you have a
that you are looking for. You may also be afraid of notchronic condition that you feel makes other people
having the proper training or supervision in order tostay away.
effectively create health improvements, or you maySome powerful fears there to be sure, but let's look at
be afraid that you are going to get hurt.the fear of actually Succeeding in a long-term
Those are all common concerns when it comes torelationship:
physical fitness, but what about being afraid of whatYou may be afraid of "settling down" with one person
succeeding would actually mean to you? You wouldand giving up the freedom to date others or to spend
have to exercise on a daily basis, maybe even everytime with people that you are interested in. You may
day. You would have to eat healthy foods, and verybe afraid that you will have to be responsible on a daily
carefully monitor the type and amounts of foods thatbasis once you start interacting frequently with another
you ingest each day. Every day you would have toperson, or with that person's children. For that matter,
dedicate an hour or more of your time to exercisingyou may be afraid that you will have to give up some
and preparing healthy foods. You would have to beof the attention that you get from your own children, or
dedicated to your fitness program over the long-term,that you may have to share responsibility for them
and stick to that program.with someone else. You may be afraid to get into a
That sounds like an awful lot of work, and not verylong-term relationship because you'll have to start
much play! In fact, success in your attempts to losekeeping your significant other informed about what you
weight or improve your health sound very much likedo, and when you'll be home.
something that you might even be afraid to try, forWhether you are talking about a fear of successful
fear of having to give up on the things that you enjoyhealth or weight loss, being afraid to actually make the
doing.kind of money that you want to make, or simply being
Fear of Success at its finest!scared about the possible outcome of a truly
What about financial independence? Do you think it issuccessful long-term relationship, one thing is very clear
possible that fear of Success might play a factor in- YOU need to get clear!
that part of your life?If you don't get clear of the fears that are keeping you
Most people are afraid of failure in this regard becausefrom being successful, then guess what? You never
of traditional reasons; their job doesn't pay enough,will be! Your fears will keep you exactly where you
they have too many bills to ever save any significantare right now in your life, and 30 or 40 years from
amount of money, they don't have enough time tonow, you will still not have any of the things that you
bring in extra income, etc.were too afraid to successfully pursue.
Once again, those might be valid concerns, but whatDon't let fear keep you down whether it is the fear of
about being afraid to succeed? If you were financiallyfailure or the fear of Success. Decide what you want,
successful, you would gain a lot of responsibilities!and then go out there and make it happen. In the end,
Paying a lot of money in taxes is certainly on the list ofyou'll be glad that you did!
things that might be afraid of. Managing whatever