The fear of success, often masked by the fear of failure, is a powerful obstacle. It doesn’t come alone but brings along other fears, making the situation even more challenging.
What secondary fears accompany the fear of success?
- Fear of uncertainty
- Fear of changing one’s usual way of life
- Fear of being judged for being successful
- Fear of breaking relationships with the current close environment (friends, relatives)
There is absolutely no point in dealing with all these fears, precisely because they are based on the fear of success. These fears are secondary. When you finally rid yourself of the fear of “what if it happens,” these satellites will disappear on their own, having lost their “nutritional environment.”
What Are The Symptoms Of The Fear Of Success?
1. You constantly fail to finish what you started.
2. You talk a lot about what you’re going to do, but you don’t take action
3. You work on several projects simultaneously without properly concentrating on any one of them.
4. Your list of goals for the future year remains the same every time.
5. You often engage in self-criticism.
6. Distraction and procrastination are your best friends.
7. You don’t truly enjoy what you’re doing.
8. In situations where you are about to succeed, something always seems to go wrong.
9. You feel guilty for any, even the smallest, achievements if your friends, relatives, or colleagues have not achieved the same.
10. You don’t share your successes with anyone.
If at least one of these points is present in your life, you have a fear of success, a fear of what will happen. Essentially, the fear of success is connected with leaving the usual comfort zone.
Your comfort zone isn’t just about being comfortable; it’s about familiarity and knowing how to respond..
For example, if you work 12-16 hours a day with, at best, one day off, you might find yourself in a familiar routine. You get tired, complain about your immediate environment’s difficulties, seek sympathy and support, and continue. You know what to do and how to react in different situations. This is your usual “comfort” zone.
Your brain will actively strive to return you to this familiar level of comfort. As a result, you might subconsciously make decisions that block your path to success in order to maintain the status quo.
It’s this usual “comfort zone” that pulls a person back to where everything is clear and well-known. For this reason, people who grew up or lived in poverty might squander millions won in the lottery within the first two years.
Similarly, entrepreneurs who achieve significant financial success might experience emotional burnout after 2-3 months, face financial setbacks, and return to a “comfortable” income level. At the same time millionaires who lose everything and end up penniless can often rebuild their wealth from scratch within a couple of years.
How To Overcome The Fear Of Success And Reach A New Level?
The secret is not to try to break out of the “comfort zone” but to gradually expand it to such a degree that your goals and success smoothly fit into it. Then, you won’t fear “what if it happens,” and you won’t need to force yourself with useless efforts and struggles.
How Is The Expansion Of The Comfort Zone Achieved?
It’s achieved through changes in thinking patterns! For example, when shopping, you might see a jar of red caviar for $30 and think, “That’s expensive!” However, when dining out with friends at a fast-food restaurant and spending the same $30 on a burger, fries, and a drink, you don’t hesitate. By realizing that you’d spend the same amount either way, your thinking pattern could change. Next time, you might prefer caviar over a burger because it’s tastier and healthier.
By repeating such actions, you develop a habit of including caviar in your breakfast routine, and it becomes part of your “comfort zone.” Now, when you buy it, you won’t think, “It’s expensive, I can’t afford it!”
The same applies to changes in career.
It’s normal for changes, even positive ones, to cause anxiety. But the real question is: why are you afraid of change? What makes you entertain the idea of returning to your “comfortable environment” and sabotaging the success you’ve achieved with your own hands?
Read also 9 Habits of Highly Organized Women.
