How to overcome a fear of failure to achieve your ambitions
Within the music industry, fear is something that constantly holds people back. It may be for several reasons: failure, rejection, unsure of the outcome etc. Regardless of the reason, there are many steps that can be taken in order to overcome fear so that you can achieve your ambitions.
Franklin D. Roosevelt, a former president of the United States said that “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself”. In many ways, this is undoubtedly true. Shut your eyes and imagine going on a rollercoaster for the first time. Of course, many people would have a fear that they would need to overcome within this situation. You wait in line as each group of people embarks on their rollercoaster journey. One by one, the line gets shorter. The terror. The fear. The tingling in your body. The questioning of your mind wondering why you even came to the theme park in the first place. It’s your turn. One foot in front of the other, you step into the carriage and sit down. A harness comes down above you – supposedly to stop you from falling out. The carriage climbs to the first drop of several hundred feet, and you feel an instant emotion of regret throughout your body. But then it drops. Within the first second, you realize that it’s the most blissful and exhilarating experience one could possibly ask for. The wind rushing through your hair. The excitement from others around you. There was truly nothing to be afraid of.
Whether it is a rollercoaster, or a fear of failure within the music industry, the principals are exactly the same when it comes to overcoming fear. Because very often, the worst part of the entire experience is simply the emotions in your mind telling you that you shouldn’t be doing it. But the problem is that fear kills growth. You can either stand around waiting for things to happen, or you can adapt your actions to fit your ambitions. It’s your choice.
Many of our beliefs and fears are typically formed during our younger years, and we typically remember them throughout adult life. For example, how did your parents react when you made a mistake? How did you treat money? Was failure easy to overcome? In order to overcome a fear of failure, we first have to ask ourselves why we have the fear in the first place, and identify where it came from. Were you badly punished when you failed or rewarded? Who is the source of that fear? How often do you fail in order to learn from mistakes?
Next, you have you ask yourself how you can overcome this fear. In many scenarios, it’s a simple case of replacing the fear with an alternate belief that is not so scary. For example, instead of perceiving failure as a bad action, you could view it as a way of shaping your life and future. Once that is complete, you should be ready to take action and remove the failure.
Finally, here are some tips for overcoming any fear:
- Develop & practice new beliefs so that you are not scared anymore. Look yourself in the mirror and repeat them, write them down every morning, whatever works for you
- Ask yourself why you have the fear, and if there’s something or someone keeping it alive
- Don’t avoid the fear. If you’re scared of being on stage, go on stage as much as possible. Get your fears out in the open
- Always take action
Fear is something that’s often not talked about very frequently within the music industry. But as we start to be more open about it, the healing process will certainly become much easier.
