Managing Our Fear of Failure
Do you ever worry that you might fail at something in your law practice? Do you ever feel that your fear of failing at something hampers your success? Or causes you stress?
Despite our confidence, many of us struggle with internal fears. But, overwhelmingly, the most challenging and frequent fear is failure. In this newsletter, I will discuss how our fear of failure affects us and give four tangible tools to overcome them.
Impact of our Fear of Failure
Our fear of failure can dramatically impact our ability to perform. For example, as a trial attorney, if I give mental energy to my concern that I will lose the case, I present my evidence and argue my case in a much less effective manner. I focus on the outcome rather than the process, and I distract myself negatively from the task at hand.
Let me give an analogy. I am an avid golfer. I played competitively for my high school and college teams. Now, “despite my years,“ I participate in club tournaments. I’ve learned that when I’m hitting over a pond, and I begin to think, “if I mishit this just a little bit, I’m in the water!“I am much more likely to hit it in the water. On the other hand, if I am confident in my shotmaking and visualize a result where my ball lands safely on the green, I am far more likely to hit a good shot. And when I visualize a positive result and then focus on hitting the ball, my chances of success are greatly increased.
It not only affects our results; it also creates unnecessary stress for us. When we are worried about losing, we get anxious. We feel trapped and not fulfilled. The fear of failure can have a dramatic impact on us emotionally.
Tools for Overcoming the Fear of Failure
So how do we handle our fear of failure? How do we overcome it?
Here are some helpful tools:
1. Change your thoughts and your attitude. Visualize a positive outcome; visualize a win, not a loss. Of course, we win and lose some; we do not know the outcome. But we will do much better by choosing to visualize a successful result. Why not choose a thought that serves us instead of hampers us?
2. Forget the outcome and focus on the process. If you focus on your stroke in hitting a putt, your stroke is better. Whatever your field of endeavor is, if you focus on the present, and what you do to prepare the case for trial, your performance will be better. Enjoy the process of what we do best.
3. Get into action. When we get into action, the results will take care of themselves. Focus on what we do best- outline our examinations, interview witnesses, prepare our opening, etc. Get started.
4. Keep your target of success in your mind. You know what you want to achieve. You know your ultimate goal. When the fears crop up, push them aside, and replace them with your vision of success. If we do fail, it is simply another step on our journey to accomplishing our dreams.
Which of these tools is most helpful to you?
I am working with attorneys and other professionals to help them be as successful and fulfilled in their profession as they want. I would love to learn more about you, your challenges and your goals. If you would like to chat, please set up a complimentary discovery call with me here: https://calendly.com/garymiles-successcoach/one-one-discovery-call