Are you more afraid of failing or succeeding as a freelancer?
It’s normal to be afraid of failure, but for some of us the fear of success is equally or more paralyzing. Why? Because it means we should change.
And change is scary too.
But change is necessary for success. And you’re probably reading Leaving Work Behind for motivation to succeed. Either to leave your current day job or to continue building your freelance business – maybe it’s both!
I coach a fair amount of newbie freelancers and I would wager that fear (of both failing and succeeding) ranks at the top of the list of what holds people back from trying. And from even putting themselves out there in the first place.
Is that you too? If so, here are five ways to punch fear in the face and increase your odds of succeeding long-term in your freelance business.
1. Assess the Risk
Ask yourself this question.
What’s the worst that can happen?
Seriously think about it and play the answer out in your head. I once read a book that suggested to play it out like a movie reel. Try to envision exactly what you think the worst case scenario outcome is and feel it for a moment.
Is it really as bad as you thought? Let’s say that you’re a new freelancer (writer or otherwise, it doesn’t matter) and you’re afraid of pitching for work. You don’t feel quite qualified or experienced enough, or insecure for another reason.
What’s the worst that can happen if you put yourself out there and start pitching for work? In my experience, the worst thing that happens is someone tells you, “No thanks” or doesn’t respond at all to your pitch.
If you played it forward, you might think that someone is going to tell you to “F-off,” that you’ll somehow get blacklisted from the internet at large or something else as ridiculous. But what are the odds of that actually happening? And how much control does any one person really have?
2. Publicly Declare What You Want to Accomplish
I publish my income reports for a few reasons. One is that I learned a ton from reading other people’s. Another is that it allows me to be transparent in my online business practices. And lastly, it holds me publicly accountable to my goals.
You don’t have to publish an income report or your own monthly goals to your blog, but sharing them in a Facebook group or via another social media platform can be equally as powerful.
Shoot, just writing them down and placing them somewhere visible is extremely helpful. Add your monthly goal to your computer as your screensaver, pin it to the corkboard above your desk or tape it to the fridge. Do what you have to do to declare it and make it so you can see it often.
3. Ask for Help
Surrounding yourself with like-minded people and/or a support system is extremely helpful. It can be in the form of accountability partners, a mastermind, your spouse (or another family member) or a coach.
The point is, you need other people that you can share your goals with, your doubts/fears and celebrate your successes with you. Freelancing is tough to do on your own. And not as much fun, frankly!
I’ve been in two different mastermind groups for going on a year and have worked with my coach for about the same amount of time. I cringe to think about what my business would look like if I didn’t have these folks to lean on, bounce ideas off of or celebrate with.
An added bonus is that these people can help you to play it forward and assess your risk as mentioned above. I just did this last week with my girl Ariel, when we commiserated over a joint fear of the other shoe dropping, i.e. what if our businesses completely stalled without warning? You see, I’m not exempt from fear either!
4. Give Yourself a Deadline
We all work better with a deadline or specific timeline in place to get something done. I’ve mentioned before that with client work I have a deadline, but I also self-impose my own deadline a few days earlier (or more) to prevent any hiccups (aka life) that might get in the way.
I’ve also started using Trello to pre-plan my weeks and assign tasks for my business out over the course of each day. Sometimes I don’t feel like doing a certain task, but because I’ve assigned a deadline to it, my inner competitor comes out and challenges me to get it done before the day is over. This helps me to get more done and prevents me from pushing things back until the next day or week.
5. Just Do It!
Let’s face it, Nike said it best. You have to take action at some point, even if you’re scared.
In my book taking action is the number one best way to combat fear. It’s like pulling off a bandaid, you get it over with quick and in hindsight the fear was larger than the actual pain. In fact, it was no big deal.
And by doing something the first time, you now have experience with it. Even if it didn’t go as well as you wanted, it likely didn’t go as badly as you thought it could. And now you know what to change to make it go better next time.
And if it went better than imagined? You now have a positive experience to build from and a little extra motivation to try again. Take advantage of that and do it again right away.
In Conclusion
Fear sucks. Instead of letting either fear of success or failure stand in your way, own it and punch it in the face by moving forward anyway.
Assess your risk by asking yourself “What’s the worst that can really happen?” Get some extra accountability by announcing your goals publicly and by surrounding yourself with support.
Lastly, give yourself a deadline and just do it. It might go better than you ever imagined. And even if it’s a big flop, it’s better than wondering “What if?”
What’s your best strategy for combatting fear as a freelancer? Let us know in the comments!
Photo credit: By Joshua Earle via Unsplash
venkatesh khajjidoni says
Hey Gina,
I faced it (only fear of failure). when i had lack of blog post idea, i felt fear of failure.
Now, i don’t have fear of failure in my freelance writing business. I have confidence to succeed in my business one day.
Thank you for your informative post.
Gina Horkey says
Glad to hear it! Own that feeling and continue to bring it with you:-)
Sid says
The only true antidote for fear is action. When I notice fear, I start searching for the appropriate action to chase it away.
Gina Horkey says
100% agreed Sid. Action is the best cure for fear!
Giles Lascelle says
Now this is very good and timely! I was just sitting down to plan out my next steps to achieve greater success with my coaching, training and writing activities, and the email notifying me of this post was the first thing I read.
Thank you too, for the idea about using Trello. I’ve looked into it a few times before, and I’ve never been able quite to get my head round it. Each time I end up thinking, “Yeah, it looks like it ought to suit my way of thinking, but exactly how is it going to be better for me than a more traditional To Do app?” Your example just made it all click for me.
Thanks again
Giles
Gina Horkey says
Giles – I’m glad to hear that (on all accounts!). I also had a hard time envisioning how Trello would help at first, but no I LOVE IT! Enjoy:-)
Rene says
Hello Tom, I am writing you hear hoping you will see me. My question is I was working on a wildly popular wordpress site, the one I showed in the link. My problem was I could not afford to monetize it so I have sort of given up. What is your advice to me? That is any direction or advice is appreciated. Thanks.
Tom Ewer says
I’m not sure I can give you any specific advice, because you haven’t asked me a specific question Rene…
Vicky Cox says
I’m going through my emails and making decisions now about the choices I need to make to move forward. I’ve realized I need to focus a LOT less on courses, podcasts, reading, and learning (all very good things), and just get busy pitching and writing. Great reminder, Gina!
Gina Horkey says
You’ve got this Vicky! Things we all need to remember:-)
Elvis Michael says
This article couldn’t have come at a better time. Just today, I received several high-paying assignments (for the very first time) from a very reputable client.
I felt overwhelmed at first, but then I sat back and remembered my overall skills and my years of experience. The many pieces I have published for so many people over time.
Long story short: New client, same quality service. I am now getting ready to deliver great content this week like I always have.
Always good to read a good article from you, Gina 🙂
Elvis
Gina Horkey says
Congrats on the new workload Elvis! How exciting for you. I’m glad that after your first feelings of overwhelm, that you were able to breathe, take a step back and appreciate the opportunity and your experience. I’m sure you’ll do great!
Beth says
Okay, so this comment isn’t about fear, but I love seeing how you use Trello. I just started using it myself and have it set up completely differently – by month. It’s working for now but you’ve given me some ideas. Thanks, Gina!
Gina Horkey says
That’s great Beth – the tool rocks and I now use it every day!!
Yegon says
Gina, this post couldn’t have come at a better time. I’ve just started my freelance career and, as you can guess, fear is a huge factor. Your post has emboldened me and I can now look confidently into the future.
Gina Horkey says
Get it Yegon!!
Theodore Nwangene says
A very brilliant and inspiring article Tom,
The best antidote to fear is indeed taking action and I couldn’t have agreed more.
One of my favourite quote is “Do what you fear the most and the death of fear becomes inevitable”.
I also agree with the idea of asking yourself the question….. What’s the worst that can happen? it’ll really boost your spirit and will enable you to get down on it.
JUST DO IT.
Gina Horkey says
AMEN!
Zbynek says
Gina,
all of these tools are great and I’ve been utilizing them to a great success. This is not a brag, it’s just a confirmation they simply works 🙂
I just wanted to add something that helped me tremendously getting rid of a fear. It’s this quote:
“The only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing”
That quote reframes my thinking into there’s no failure, only a lesson. No room for a fear then.
And another complimentary thing I wanted to share is a belief about success that I got from Tony Robbins. The formula for success is:
persistence + experimentation = success
The best implementation (in my opinion) of this formula can be seen in each child that has learned how to walk. Although they didn’t know about this formula, all of them stayed persistent in achieving their goal and were experimenting with their approaches. The success (walking) was therefore inevitable.
Gina Horkey says
Great additional points – thanks so much for sharing!
Kingsley says
Thanks for your key points to allaying the fear of failure or success in freelancing. I feel like holding the bull by the horn now. One thing left. New, never done this, but interested in proof reading. Need your advice…..
Agencia digital says
Thanks for sharing. Very inspiring.