Should I Be Afraid To Start A Business?

Andrew 
Andrew is an in-demand Coach and Speaker focused on helping startup and fast growing company founders launch, fund and grow their startups across the globe.

As a coach and speaker focused on helping founders start, grow and get funding for their businesses – I meet many founders and would-be founders.

Some of them are highly successful and others are still preparing their foundations before they launch.

There is one thing in common with successful founders and those still waiting to launch – and that one thing is best described as ‘fear’ or ‘anxiety’.

Most of us suffer from it at one time or another – what distinguishes the winners from the would-be-winners is the decision to move forward despite that fear.

We all hate to fail, to try and not do our best, to embarrass ourselves in front of others – but we are guaranteed failure if we don’t embrace that fear and push past our comfort zone and dive headfirst into what is making us afraid.  I am starting to believe that our ability to achieve our true potential is related directly to our ability to dive into those areas which are deeply outside of where we are comfortable. And as we do, we begin to see that the barrier was an imaginary one of our own creation – a self created veil which could have stopped us from stretching ourselves and discovering new found strength, creativity and ability.

Sorry this sounds a little “rah rah” but its all true. We are our own best friends but we are also our own worst enemies – don’t talk yourself out of achieving your own greatness, don’t grab hold of mediocrity like a comfort blanket. If we don’t try too hard then we can’t disappoint ourselves and we can’t really fail right?

Wrong!  If you were put here to be your best – to contribute to the world in some way, to make a difference and not just be a one second, uneventful blip in history then you owe it to yourself to reach your true potential.  To do what you are here to do.

So you might be afraid – well I say “Screw It!” – We’re all afraid at times – do what you are meant to do.

And…like diving into a cold swimming pool, it will shock you at first but then you’ll love it and you’ll wonder why you ever hesitated.

By all means be afraid of starting a business – but if that’s what your heart is telling you to do. Do it anyway – and try to mitigate your risk by working with people you trust. The worst failure is surely to come to the end of your time here and realize you missed you chance and you missed your calling.

Note: We at Inc42 take our ethics very seriously. More information about it can be found here.