Fear is normal š©ļø
But letting it stop you is optional.
Listen, Iāve felt it plenty of times š
ā”ļø Changing careers
ā”ļø Taking roles where I had a lot to learn
ā”ļø Making decisions with incomplete information
ā”ļø Walking into rooms where other people knew far more than I did
And Iāve learned that fear can be surprisingly convincing.
Because it doesn’t sound like: āAndre, youāre scared.ā
It gives you perfectly reasonable arguments for waiting another 6 months.
Managing fearš§ š”š§āš
When fear starts influencing a decision, I try to ask š
1. What exactly am I afraid of?
ā³ Name the outcome. Failure? Financial loss? Embarrassment? Disappointing someone?
2. Is the risk real?
ā³ Separate genuine downside from the discomfort of doing something difficult or unfamiliar.
3. What can I do to reduce it?
ā³ Prepare better. Ask someone experienced. Start smaller. Build a fallback.
4. What does doing nothing cost me?
ā³ We spend a lot of time calculating the risk of acting and very little calculating the cost of staying where we are.
5. What would I tell someone else to do?
ā³ Itās remarkable how much easier a decision becomes when your own ego isnāt involved.
I donāt think the answer is to blindly āface everythingā.
Fear can be useful āļøš
ā
Sometimes it’s spotted a risk you missed
ā
It makes you prepare harder than you would have
ā
Occasionally it stops you from doing something genuinely stupid
Listen to it, understand it: then make the decision yourself.
Fear gets a seat at the table, but it doesnāt get to run the meeting.
Stay healthy!
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Andre Heeg lives in Berlin, Germany
Andre Heeg – Redefining executive health for people with demanding careers | MD, DDS | BCG Managing Director & Partner | Founder, The Upward ARC
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See alsoš Maintaining Composure When Triggered š Qigong Body Tapping to Boost Nerve Force š 10 Simple Ways to Practice Mindfulness
āArticle Photo Senja Island, Norway by Landscape Photography by Micheal Breitung. Michael Breitung is from Rƶttenbach, Bavaria, Germany
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