The closer you come to leaving the security of your 9-to-5 job to do your own thing, the greater your level of excitement… and fear.
Anyone who has ever ventured out of their safe little world will tell you they had doubts. Me included.
The thing is, when it comes to making a major life change, not only is a certain amount of fear normal, it’s actually helpful.
After all, there is a reason I named my business ChangingCourse.com and not Jump-off-a-Cliff.com.
The healthy part of fear is what will keep you from quitting your job in a huff before you’ve put some other things in place.
Fortunately, there are ways to deal with fear before it permanently derails your dream of changing course.
Take it S-L-O-W
If you already have a business idea, the best way to manage the fear of venturing out on your own is to start small.
If the thought of just up and quitting your day job frightens you, start building your client base on the side.
Small rapid experiments are better than one huge step.
For instance, instead of dropping six figures on a franchise, you could get a job working for that, or a similar, business to see how you like it.
Or instead of buying a bed and breakfast, try becoming a bed and breakfast sitter.
Begin with low-risk steps and gradually work your way up to the harder stuff.
Laugh in the Face of Fear
Did I tell you I’m closing my Changing Course business to take a senior level position at a toxic chemical company in New York City? The job pays half what I earn now and requires a horrendous three hour commute.
Do you believe me? Of course not.
The reason you don’t is because the mind rejects that which it considers absurd.
Which makes ridiculing your fears a highly effective technique for managing them. That way, you allow your natural human reaction to absurdity to take over and dismiss them.
Try it yourself. Pick your biggest fear and take it to extremes.
Paralyzed by the fear of failure?
Then picture everyone you ever knew standing outside the homeless shelter you are now forced to live in, holding a sign that reads: “We Told You So!”
Pretty ridiculous, right?
When you realize that your worst-case fantasy is just that − a fantasy – making a proactive change can now feel far more manageable.
Calculate the Risk-Reward
Fear of the unknown keeps far too many people miserably locked in job jail.
It’s why my mantra for the last 20 years has been, information will set you free.
After all, the more you know going into something, the less there is to fear.
At least that’s what the 854+ people who signed up for my recent information-packed Paid to Brainstorm webinar discovered.
The vast majority were there because they were curious about becoming a licensed Profiting From Your Passions® Business Idea Generator.
What they discovered is the program hands “idea people” like them, a proven system to they can use to help future paying clients to connect the dots between:
- What they want their life to look
- The things they love to do
- And ways they can make money doing it.
Still, I know that training for this – or any new career – can trigger another fear: “What if I make the wrong choice?”
I totally get it.
Over the years I’ve had plenty of clients who’ve spent tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars on their education only to realize they hate being a nurse, engineer, college professor, electrician….
Not so with my training.
For starters, considering everything you get with the Profiting From Your Passions® program, the cost to attend is surprisingly low. (And it’s even lower if you register soon.)
Still, let’s say you take the course and then decide you’d rather write children’s books and then make money helping others do the same like former student and friend Beau Blackwell did.
Then the worst case scenario is you’ll have mastered a system to instantly recognize income-generating opportunities – a skill you will use quite literally for the rest of their life.
If you missed the Paid to Brainstorm webinar, you can watch the Replay here.
Just go to http://PaidToBrainstorm.com/webinar now.
Don’t wait long though, because the webinar replay is only available for another two days.
Also, for a very limited time, is your chance to save an additional $250 on the cost of registering for the upcoming Profiting From Your Passions® coach training.
Combine that savings with the Early Bird discount that ends Monday, July 20th and your total savings is $500.
I don’t know about you, but as worse case scenarios go, learning how to turn your interests into income — seems like a pretty low risk for an exceedingly high reward!
The Best Solution of All
Several people who were on the webinar wanted to know the same thing:
How do I get over the fear of starting something new?
If you have the same question I’ll tell you what I told them:
Stop trying. Seriously.
With any change – even positive changes like a new job, relocating, starting a business – you should expect a certain amount of fear to just go with the territory.
So if you’re waiting until you’re no longer afraid to pursue this or any dream — nothing will ever change.
And do you really want look back on your life with a lot of regretful “what ifs…”?
Instead of worrying about the unknown risks, change the question from, “What will happen if I take this leap?” to “What will happen if I do nothing?”
Let’s face it – no matter what your dream – shaking up your life is scary.
As Tom Peters said, “Unless you walk out into the unknown, the odds of making a profound difference in your life are pretty low.”
Remember, courage is not a matter of losing your fear so you can take action; courage comes from taking action. And that, in turn, helps you overcome your fear.
When you can act despite your fear, you will be rewarded many times over.
Life is short my friend. The thing you should be most afraid of, is doing nothing.
