Let’s face it: We’d all benefit from having more courage. If you had the ability to do anything that frightens you, you’d be living the life you’ve always dreamt of. You’d have all the money you ever wanted. A beautiful family that loves you unconditionally. The freedom to do whatever you want, whenever you want to.
You can achieve your dream life through entrepreneurship. Running a successful business is (or should be) the driving force that gets you up in the morning excited to start the day.
If you’re currently at a stage in your life where you know that you’d benefit from owning a business, but you’re struggling to muster up courage, you’re in the right place.
5 Ways to Muster Up Enough Courage to Start Your Business
In this article, I talk about the changes you can make to become courageous enough to launch your first business. Here are 5 ways that help you overcome resistance:
1. Build a Support System
You’re the average of the people you spend the most time with. Your beliefs, mannerisms, and behaviours are shaped by your closest friends and family. Think about the people you want to surround yourself with: Who are they? What’s their personality like? What particular positive quality would motivate you to pursue your goals?
2. Eliminate Constraints
What’s holding you back from starting your business? Do you have a partner in your life who isn’t supportive of you, or who doesn’t make you feel loved? Do you feel like you’re working your life away in a job that doesn’t satisfy you? Courage increases when you reduce constraints: Design a 9-5 exit strategy or surround yourself with people who are supportive of you.
3. Conquer Your Fears
“Never let your fears hold you back from pursuing your hopes,” is a quote by former US president, John F. Kennedy, that merits consideration in entrepreneurship. Fear is the enemy of success. Your comfort zone is a beautiful place where nothing ever grows.
4. Set Goals and Act on Them
What does courage look like in entrepreneurship? There are many definitions, but I’d say that one of them is setting goals and acting on them. Know what you want to accomplish and put it in writing. Once you know what it is that you want to achieve, it’s time to …
5. Take Massive, Determined Action
Tony Robbins famously said, “The path to success is to take massive, determined action.” Courage is not the result of waiting; The skill to do what frightens you increases with action. With every successful step you take toward your goal, you show yourself what you’re capable of.
Related: Why Getting Ahead in Life is Hard and What You Can Do About It (4 min. read)
Muster Up the Courage and Success is All Yours
The hardest part of any journey is the beginning. The key to reducing the starting resistance is to eliminate restraints and fears that hold you back. Whatever ties you down needs to be eliminated, so that you can set goals and act on them. As you go about your entrepreneurial endeavour, remember: When the going gets tough, you’ll always have your support system to fall back on.
Related: In Business, What Feels Like the End is Often the Beginning (5 min. read)
Some Great Books on Mindset
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Mindset
by Carol S. Dweck
Awaken the Giant Within
by Tony Robbins