Overcome Fear of Mistakes and Take Action

Richard Bandler said it best when he stated a real truth in that "He who hesitates waits and waits…and waits."  You must take action to overcome the fear of mistakes.  Taking some sort of action, no matter how small, is a lot better than simply sitting around planning all of the time and never implementing those plans.  Will it be perfect? Definitely not. Will it be successful? Maybe, but most likely not—not right off the bat anyway.  But you can improve on it.

There will be plenty of room for change of direction and corrections to be made on the fly.  Is that difficult and frustrating?  You better believe it.  But listen to me. It’s a lot easier to change your car’s direction when it’s moving on the road already than it is to do in the driveway before you’ve keyed the ignition.  That’s a simple fact and a great analogy.

Human beings are remarkable creatures. We are very good at responding to our environment. If something’s wrong we’ll naturally fix it. That’s why it’s not very important to get it right the first time.  You’ll respond to any problems just fine. It will get better with time. Too many of us were taught Ready, Aim, Fire as if we only get one shot. Too often this is not the case. We should be ready to fire and then aim based on what we learned from the first shot.  Almost every successful person around me, partners and business associates alike, have shared with me that they too understand this concept— and apply it.

Being "ready" is one thing, but too many of us can’t realize when you’re already there.  Now, with me, this has been a lifelong struggle. Not to procrastinate. Not to overly plan. Not to look at every single possible scenario. To just get in there and take action, because that’s what it’s all about.

Doing something new requires action. "Doing". As in more than just thinking.  Here’s a thought to act on.  Right now, let’s all work on getting things done sooner. Let’s not spend so much time sitting around planning what might or might not happen.  That type of thinking only slows us down and buries our ambition.

That’s why I write articles like this.  Part of it is helping others to overcome what holds them back.  But part of it is pure unadulterated catharsis— purging the negative energy that has and still sometimes does hold me back from taking action toward my goals.  This article is a thought process put down on paper.

There’s an old Chinese Proverb a friend of mine loves to quote: "Think long and strike fast.”  I think that’s pretty straightforward, is it not?  Are you ready to take action and overcome fear of mistakes?  Are you ready to strike?