From Fear of Failure To Financial Freedom

Every month we select one of the Legal in my Pocket members to be in the spotlight within our business. 

If you haven't heard us mention it before, Legal in my Pocket is our legal membership where we support passionate entrepreneurs with the legal elements of running their business, but it's so much more than that. 

It's community, it's a sounding board and it's a chance to network and showcase your business in front of a group of your ideal clients - if your ideal client is someone who is purpose driven and committed to doing business with integrity. 

(Feel free to join us in the membership here)

In June, our Spotlight Member was the fantastic Lauren Ray, also known as, The Courage Coach®. We asked Lauren to share her expertise on self-empowerment to give you the chance to sky rocket your life and business. 

Here's what Lauren had to say:

Over the last few years the number of women entrepreneurs around the world has skyrocketed (the pandemic having a massive impact of course). More and more female founders are daring greatly and stepping into the business arena - and I’m here for it! 

I am not just a fan of women starting businesses because of the personal freedom it can grant us (financial, location, time and emotional) - it’s also a fact that women with wealth put more money into sustainability projects, community, healthcare and community-led charities. So women in business building wealth = a better world. 

So all in all, I am a fan of all women entrepreneurs thriving.

I am therefore obsessed with empowering women in business and I personally do so as The Courage Coach® by helping them to expand beyond the fears and mindset gremlins that otherwise would derail their visibility, impact and income. I help them to realize that they are deeply capable of creating the level of success they desire, that they are capable of earning and managing wealth, of building and managing teams, of being innovative, creative and bold. 

Simply put, I help women get out of their own way. Because even the most confident, driven and successful women have inner “stuff” to deal with:

• the imposter syndrome that emerges at every new level
• the sneaky comparison and “when is it my turn” you know you shouldn’t feel (but do)
• the fear of being judged and canceled for speaking your truth or becoming “too” visible
• the doubts and pressure that comes with blazing an unconventional path they no one else you know is going for

One of the most common fears that women entrepreneurs face is the fear of failure. This can manifest as procrastination, perfectionism, getting stuck in the learning loop (constantly feeling she doesn’t know enough yet to succeed), undercharging, making “safe” but usually unaligned choices and so on… This fear often holds women back from taking empowered leaps and truly pursuing their ambitious goals. For example, I see time and time again women being afraid to launch the new offer (in case no one buys) or not hiring the team to grow the business in case they hire the wrong person. I see women afraid to put the necessary legal protection in place (*cough* lucy legal *cough*) because they are afraid of getting it wrong so they avoid it all together.

The sneaky thing about fear of failure is that it shows up in so many different ways and people often find it hard to move past because of two key issues:

1. They aren’t actually clear on what fear of failure actually looks like to them
2. They believe it’s possible to completely get rid of this fear 100% (spoiler: it’s not)

Here are my 3 top tips on how to begin to break free from this fear so you can create your business financial freedom:

Tip 1: Interrogate!

As mentioned in key issue number one, many people don’t move beyond fear of failure because they don’t really know what it is for them and how it’s showing up. So - start paying stalker-level close attention to your actions and inactions. Pay attention to how you feel as you go to do “the thing”. Notice the thoughts in your head. And when you feel like you know what it is for you - peel back the onion layers. Question and interrogate this supposed fear of failure. Ask it to be more frickin’ specific. How will you know if you failed. What’s it so worried about? What is it trying to protect you from? Keep going until you know this fear intimately. 

Important: throughout this process of self-awareness and interrogation - be nice. Don’t add to the situation by throwing in shade (read: shame)

Tip 2: Flip Reverse It 

It’s time to flip the concept of failure on it’s head completely. Of course I doubt this will be the first time you’ve ever heard someone give this tip but let’s pretend this advice is ground-breaking… ready? There is no failure, only feedback. Failures are the stepping stones to success. Failure is a natural part of any entrepreneurial journey. Instead of viewing failure as a setback, reframe it as an opportunity to learn and grow. Recognize that ALL successful entrepreneurs have faced failures, and it is through these experiences that they have gained valuable insights and resilience. So stop making a failure a stop sign but simply a signpost along the way. 

Tip 3: Go to the gym

Huh? Ok not the actual gym (although that’s not a bad idea too). The COURAGE gym. Courage is a muscle, it’s something you get better and stronger at the more you do it. There’s a great quote by Mary Daly “like you learn to swim by swimming, you learn courage by couraging”. Success is simply the habit of courage. But courage is not simply #feelthefearanddoitanyway - it’s building up the self: trust, confidence, worth and efficacy. It’s building resilience and capacity for discomfort. Courage is a conscious practice and the best thing you can ever do for your business (and your life) is to become obsessed with your own courage. 

So, to conclude, the secret to overcoming fear of failure so that you can create the financial, time and location freedom you desire? Interegote, flip-reverse & do your reps.

Keep couraging 

Lauren 

Wow what a helpful and empowering read!! You can find out more about Lauren by visiting her website here: https://www.couragecore.com/ 

And saying hi on social here: https://www.instagram.com/iamlaurenray/