Fear of Failure
How do you overcome the worry of failing, or how to take the leap of starting something new? Well- to be honest, you do and you don’t. While the main topic is fear, there are sprinkles of Kelly Jean Snack’s Story within it all as well as a few pointers I have learned about over coming fear.
You Do-
During our conversation, I expressed how important it is to know your “why” is. One of my “whys” is remembering 19-year-old me in Barnes and Noble looking for a book to help me find the next steps on my diagnosis of UC and not finding a single book.
Kelly Jean Snacks will never fail if I can at least help one person know they are not alone and that there is help out there. Instead of focusing on the fear of failure, focus on how you KNOW you can succeed. It’s easy to decide money or other people’s approval is what it means to be successful, but you will fail if that is your only goal. Measure your success in a different form, believe in your why, and add value; money will follow, and you will inspire others! (And you’ll get to a point that other people’s opinions just flat out don’t matter!) Measure by smiles, thank you’s, new people that you meet, the new experiences, and the obstacles you have overcame.
No matter what business you start or join, in today’s world, value is the most important currency. Added value can look like information, entertainment, and inspiration; the best entrepreneurs know how to do all 3. Find peace knowing everything has been done before- but it hasn’t been done by you! You don’t need to reinvent the wheel. You will be successful in any pursuit if you are authentically yourself. There is value in honesty, trustworthiness, and relatability. Even if you don’t make a dime in your business, because you “went for it”, you may find your success is that you inspired someone else to step out of their comfort zone and follow their dream. See, starting a business is actually not about us, it’s about them. It’s about being in service for others with love. Speak from your heart and say what you know; you won’t fail.
My final note on finding your why and believing in your success is the importance of personal development and making sure taking care of yourself is a priority. Start by making small, healthy habits that you can stick to. Make that promise to yourself knowing that you deserve the time investment in yourself. When you do that, self-confidence and trust in yourself will follow. This is necessary in trusting yourself and knowing your capabilities that you will be successful because you promised yourself- and you don’t break those promises.
You Don’t-
The reason Kelly Jean Snacks is successful is because I have failed at SO-MANY-THINGS! I failed at my health in my late teens. I failed at being able to stay at my job that took me 5 years to complete college for. I failed at 3 different MLM companies that I absolutely loved. I always cheated on my paleo, GAPS, whole30, etc...diets.
If I didn’t fail on my diets, I wouldn’t have pursued a product that was a solution to not only help me but others in finding a nutritious product that actually tasted good. The experiences I received at a job or joining an MLM are priceless. I know how to work hard, self-manage, improve on communication skills, continue to learn, and even got more comfortable in front of a camera.
You’re not alone when you’re worried about starting small. Listen to other start-up stories, they’ve all been there where they had no one buy their product or no one showed up to their events. Even for myself, when you post on social media for your followers to do an action and only get crickets... IT-DOESN’T-MEAN-ANYTHING. It actually benefits you! People will see you are willing to put yourself out there! That’s the baby steps of growing a trusting relationship with your audience and it's just part of it.
As with Kelly Jean Snacks, only by evaluating daily, weekly, monthly failures are we able to improve, keep being relevant, and grow. Get comfortable with failure; seek out where it is versus fearing it. Easier said than done I know. As I get comfortable with fear in business, it will still rare it’s head at me in different aspects of my life whether in relationships, health, or current events. It will always be a practice of self-reflection, and make sure you are giving yourself the love and grace you deserve! This goes back to self-confidence and keeping promises to yourself. It may seem silly to prioritize your personal development books/workouts. Negative talk about “being selfish for taking time for ourselves “or “not being good enough” seem to follow us like a Stage 5 clinger. Know that we are our own worst critics and if criticized, it’s by people doing less than you, not by anyone doing more. Go-getters recognize go-getters and we relate knowing the road we’ve chosen is not easy.
Failure isn’t easy, but...
I hope you fail💙
Written By: Kelly McKitrick