I have been listening to podcasts for more than 10 years. I have been enchanted by the smart tips and tricks shared by the host or their guests. I have been enamored with the poetic language used by many of the speakers.
Often, I have felt inspired, entertained, or educated. Many times I feel in awe for the amazing use of the English language.
One day, I decided that I wanted to start my podcast. But how could I deal with the fear of failure?
What are my fears
I have three fears to deal with:
- I am not smart enough
- Even if I became smart enough, my English is not good enough.
- I have never been a talkative person
My fear of not being smart enough
My fear of not being smart enough comes from never being a good student. In my family, there was never a standard for excellence, my only responsibility was to pass. Neither of my parents promoted education nor did much to educate themselves. At one time, my father bought hundreds of books, but only as decoration.
While at University. My only goal was to get a piece of paper so that I could move on with my life.
Naturally, since I never excelled as a student, I never felt that I was smart enough.
Fear of not speaking good enough English
I have been in Canada since 1998, 22 years. Even if now I spend most of my life speaking and listening to English. I am aware of the many mistakes I make regularly. I fear that because I make these mistakes, my message will not be taken seriously.
Feeling uncomfortable speaking
I have never been a talkative person. When meeting with friends, I often find myself doing most of the listening, politely nodding my head and smiling. I have never been the type that can speak and tell stories in a group of friends.
How I deal with my fear and insecurities and how can deal with your insecurities as well
1 No one is watching, no one cares
As a dance teacher, I tell my students not to worry about other people on the dance floor. No one is watching. Everyone else is too concerned with their selves
Well, I have to tell myself the same thing. As a new podcaster, I have no audience, so if I make a mistake, no one is listening. If no one is listening, I am free to make as many mistakes as I can.
2. What’s the worse that can happen
If someone listens to my podcast and doesn’t like it, what’s the worse that it can happen? Simply, they don’t have to listen to it again. No physical nor emotional harm can happen.
When you are dealing with fear, think of the worst-case scenario. Many times, when we look at fear in the face, we find out that it’s not as frightening as we imagined it to be.
3. What can I learn from my failure?
Most of the time, failure is a learning opportunity. We learn by failing. I like to mention the process of learning how to walk. Imagine an infant learning how to walk. He falls hundreds of times before he figures out how to do it. Each time he fell, it was a learning opportunity. I have recorded 102 podcast episodes. I feel that I learn a little bit more after each episode.
Whatever your goal is, if it is important to you, you will have to go get up and try it again after each failure.
I haven’t overcome my fear of failure but the desire to build a podcasting audience is bigger than my fear of failure.
What about you?
Will you let fear get in the way of your dreams and goals, or will you face your fear, welcome it as a friend and a companion, and go after your goal anyway?