I went to see a recent client, a barrister, in court and watched in awe as he eloquently and confidently addressed the judge and jury. To see him all self-assured, you’d think he was born a natural public speaker.
Not so. When he was a young adult and junior solicitor he suffered the usual gut wrenching nerves that many of us experience when we speak in front of people. But rather than letting his fear hold him back, he learnt the techniques of good public speaking, and then, despite feeling insecure and sick with nerves, he just did it, over and over and over again through public speaking engagements, debating opportunities and so on. This helped him with building confidence.
He made mistakes along the way, but he also made something else: an absolute success of himself! No matter what the result, good or bad, each time he spoke publicly he faced his fear rather than allowing it to hold him back. And naturally over time, the fear lessened and confidence took its place.
The moral of the story is: Fear it. Do it.
When we’re faced with a fearful task most of us think: “I’ll do that when I’m more confident and experienced”. But we only build confidence and experience when we actually do it.
If our barrister waited for the day when he was confident about public speaking without actually doing anything, he’d probably be working in a different job today, still waiting, and probably riddled with “What ifs?”.
Fear restricts us from reaching our full potential, and sadly, it has put many soloists out of business. The next time you are faced with a fearful task, help yourself with building confidence by repeating the following Positive Words and Affirmations (also known as a POW-A script).
Read it. Repeat it. Believe it. Achieve it.
Positive Words
- I am going to overcome my fear.
- Every time I do something that I fear, I will grow in confidence.
- Now is the time for me to do it.
- I will equip myself with the skills to do this properly.
- I will learn, read and research.
- I will seek input and feedback from knowledgeable people.
- I will practice and prepare.
- I will do my very best.
- If I make mistakes, I will only get better as a result of making them.
- I am a success every time I face my fear, no matter what the result.
- Fear will no longer hold me back in life. I will grow, and so will my business.
Affirmations
- I am a success
- I am brave
- I am skilled
- I am prepared and ready for all opportunities
Remember that as a soloist, you’re already a success.
Many people yearn to have their own business but never have the courage to start one up. Give yourself a pat on the back, you chose to leave the nest and fly solo. Face the fear in all areas of your business and by building confidence you will give yourself a chance to really soar.
What do you fear the most? Has fear ever held you back? Have you overcome any fears, and if so, how?
“ The moral of the story is: Fear it. Do it. ”
Lucinda Lions writes persuasive and compelling website copy. Her web copywriting ebooks assist solo and micro business owners to write their own sales-boosting copy.
