Addressing and Overcoming the Fear of Failure

Fear is a funny thing. It’s a motivating thing and yet it can be a debilitating thing.

This is especially true in the case of women entrepreneurs. Research conducted by Maria Minniti and Carlo Nardone in their article, “Being in Someone Else’s Shoes: the Role of Gender in Nascent Entrepreneurship” shows that the fear of failure plays the largest role in preventing women from starting new ventures. Minniti and Nardone used survey data from the 2002 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) Project which included more than 2000 entrepreneurs across 37 countries. They conducted an special type of empirical analysis on the data to equalize conditions for men and women thus analyzing them in the same economic environments and socio-economic circumstances. This method allowed them to eliminate factors that do not influence whether or not an individual becomes an entrepreneur such as hair color.

Ultimately, fear stands in the way of women pursing entrepreneurship as a career. This fear then breeds self-doubt and a lack of confidence in one’s abilities. This hurdle is much higher for women entrepreneurs than for men.

I am in the midst of launching my first entrepreneurial venture and am confronted by this demon on a regular basis. My train of thought usually goes something like this,

“Oh wow, how am I going to get this off the ground?! What if I can’t get enough financing? My family will be disappointed in me and all of the people that know I am launching this business will be disappointed. How can I face them if I fail? How do I explain to everyone that I failed?”

Sound familiar?

When you find yourself up against the fear of failure demon, here are a few things that I have found helpful and I hope you will too!

1. Join a networking group – Find a networking group that meets regularly. You have a better opportunity to form bonds with members and have real conversations about fear in your business. One such organization is LadiesWhoLaunch which provides resources and connections for women entrepreneurs with local chapters around the country.

2. Identify your fear – What are you afraid of? Whether it is the fear of what others will think, running out of money or not having the capabilities to move forward – write it down. Next, try to identify why this is a fear and finally try to understand what causes it. Once you have put it down on paper, it may help you confront it and move forward.

 3. Consider the worst case scenario – Acknowledge your fear, realize that it is okay to be afraid and then envision what the absolute worst case scenario would be if you did fail. It is highly likely that it would not result in the end of the world. Better yet, recovering from a failure may lead to a new opportunity.

Are you facing this demon? Please share your story and any tips you have to fight the fear of failure in the comments section below.

References 

Arenius, P & Minniti, M., 2005. Perceptual variables and nascent entrepreneurship. Small Business Economics 24(3): 233-247.

Kirkwood, J. 2009. Is a lack of self-confidence hindering women entrepreneurs?, International Journal of Gender and Entrepreneurship, 1(2): 118-133.

Minniti, M., Nardone, C., 2007, Being in Someone Else’s Shoes: the Role of Gender in Nascent Entrepreneurship, Small Business Economics 28, 223-238.

Winn, J. 2005., Women entrepreneurs: can we remove the barriers? International Entrepreneurship and Management, 1(3): 381-397.