The Voice of Fear

I follow the Facebook pages and groups.  I sign up for the seminars and learning opportunities.  I attend the Dancelife Teacher Conference.  I am a part of the Gold Alliance.  I listen to my mentors.  I take copious notes.  I am inspired by business leaders.

My notes are copious.  I’m excited.  There are so many new programs I want to

institute, so many improvements I want to make in my business.  I want to ignite that new spark in my team.  I have so many plans, ideas, and intentions.  The go-getter, girl boss Voice of Success, speaks loudly to me, and I am fired up, ready to take on the world.

Then I am afraid.  Self-doubt creeps in and pulls me back right when I am on the cusp of trying new things or exploring new territory within my business.  Worry plagues me when I consider removing a program, scaling back, or trimming expenses.  The what-if’s start.  There is an odd comfort in the status quo.  I take two steps forward, excited about new possibilities, then I take one step back, fearful of risk.  The gutless, faint-hearted Voice of Fear, speaks loudly to me, and I am doubtful, dissuaded from taking a chance.

Hush the Voice of Fear.  People, I am the Queen Mother of Overthinking, particularly when it comes to imagining the worst possible thing that could happen.  However, oddly, the Voice of Success is louder.  It tells that Voice of Fear to be quiet.  It tells me to seize opportunities, take control, and make big things happen.  I learned to hush the Voice of Fear by…

• taking every opportunity to learn. Filling my mind with good things – good business sense, methods, and strategies – leaves little room for the scary things.
• Surrounding myself with a robust support system. I am much less likely to feel anything other than inspired when I am in the company of other productive, profitable business leaders.
• doing hard things anyway. My Voice of Success is VERY good at pushing me toward facing hard things head-on with a warrior spirit.

Train the Voice of Success.  Just as if I’m training my singing voice – and Y’all, it could use extensive training – I have to keep training my Voice of Success.  You can follow all the pages and groups, subscribe to all the

newsletters, read all the blog posts, and attend all the seminars, but you must get busy actively cultivating that voice, listening to it, paying attention to it, and appreciating it.  Profitable, productive business owners allow the Voice of Success to speak loudly and with little interruption.  They hear it clearly.  They trust it.  I learned to amplify the Voice of Success by…

• refusing to be fearful. I am scared, but I am also delightfully stubborn and hate taking “no” for an answer.
• believing in myself. My track record is good, my business is strong, and my success is evident so far, and I can’t lose sight of that.
• celebrating victories. I am encouraged when I stop to remember that I created a thriving studio with a beautiful culture, it has survived and even grown, and I am living my dream.

Let me encourage you to silence that Voice of Fear.  Hear it, acknowledge it, then quiet it.  Allow that Voice of Success to speak.  Allow it to be amplified, listen to it, and follow it.