what would you do if you knew you couldn't fail?

As babies, we come into the world with only two fears – the fear of falling and the fear of loud noises.  

All of our other fears – be they of spiders, public speaking, flying, not being liked, failure or any of the thousands of other things we can learn to be frightened of - are picked up later on.   

Imagine how differently we would act, as babies, if we had a fear of failure.  Would we persist the way we do when we don’t succeed, over and over again, in learning to roll over, and sit up, and crawl and walk and run?  Would we explore and create and experiment? 

Or would we hold back, letting opportunities pass us by, in case we don’t get it right - consumed with doubt, wondering what people will think if things don’t work out first go... and never get anywhere as a result.

Then flip this idea over.  If fear of failure didn’t exist for adults, what would you be doing differently?  Write a list of actions that you would take, right now, if the thought of failing wasn’t on your radar at all.

Now, run your mind through those actions, and imagine taking those steps. 

• Do you notice a surge of progress? 

• Do you see yourself blitzing through some things, stumbling over others, getting up, trying something again, or differently, and powering on? 

• Do you notice people around you, watching your tenacity, admiring your drive and your ability to respond resourcefully to obstacles?

If you feel the fear and ‘do it anyway’ (as author Susan Jeffers recommends):

• What will this give you, personally?

• How will it transform your work?  

• What impact will it have on your family? 

If you attack your work or your business the way a baby attacks learning to walk - with unwavering persistence, even when you fall over and scuff your knees - even if everyone is watching - where could you be?