Risk is something that can instill fear in all of us. The risk of rejection, the risk of failure, and so on and so on.

My clients often express fear of starting something new in their careers. My friends are sometimes afraid of making a major life change. I too have experienced fear of certain risks.

I’ve had several people say to me they admire the fact that I wasn’t afraid to risk traveling to the other side of the world by myself, risk ending a sub-par relationship, or risk starting my own business.

It wasn’t about being unafraid.

It was about pushing through and overcoming the fears in order to get to something better in my life.

7 Ways to Overcome Your Fear of Risk and Improve Your Life

A couple of years ago I read an article entitled “7 Ways to Control Your Fear and Advance Your Career” by bestselling author Harvey Mackay.

The seven things he outlined can be applied to any area of your life, not just your career.

I’d like to expand on the seven things he mentioned, but I’m going to slightly change the order of them.

1. Try new things.

Yes, you’ve heard me say that more than once. But, it’s always worth repeating.

Why? Because there are always new things to try.

And you never know what new thing is going to become the thing that gets you over your fears and improves your life until you try.

Mackay says,

“There is only one thing worse than a quitter, and that is someone who is afraid to begin…Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs built the ark. Professionals built the Titanic. Think about it.”

Trying new things will lessen future fears, build your confidence, and increase your ability to handle future risks.

So, let me ask you the same question Darius Rucker is asking in his recent hit song,

When was the last time you did something for the first time?

2. Review your risks

If taking future risks will help you overcome your fear and build your confidence, then certainly any past risks you’ve taken and fears you’ve already faced have built a certain level of confidence in you.

Spend some time reviewing all the times you’ve stepped out of your comfort zone or done something you were afraid of.

What was the result?

How did you feel after you did it?

Even if it failed, what was the biggest lesson you learned from it?

What was successful about the experience?

How did it help you overcome fear?

Chances are the outcome wasn’t as bad as you thought it was going to be and most of the risks you took turned out to be okay.

Mackay says,

“Figure out what made them work. Can you duplicate those decisions that led to success and apply them to other situations?”

3. Explore your memories

Since you’re already looking back, take some time to also look back over your life and career to explore what exactly instills fear in you.

What do those situations look like?

What are their common denominators?

What happened when you were afraid to do something but did it anyway?

4. Look at your responsibilities

Regardless of your age, marital status, work situation, etc., you have a lot of priorities and responsibilities in your life.

Sometimes I think my friends who are married with children assume I’m not as busy as them or don’t have as many responsibilities, but it’s not true. I just have a different set of responsibilities and pressures.

As a single person who owns and runs her own business, I have a lot of pressures on me to get everything done without the help of a partner (or children old enough to earn an allowance). All the household responsibilities fall on me, and all the finances and expenses are covered by only one income.

It’s my name and reputation that’s at stake when something goes wrong in the business. The business is sometimes like a baby in that, on some days, it’s a never-ending 24–7 job.

Your challenges might be the same or might be totally different.

You can’t compare your situation to someone else’s because it’s likely you’ll be comparing apples to oranges.

Just look at your own responsibilities.

Which ones make you feel afraid or anxious?

Why are you afraid of them?

Keep digging and ask “why” until you’ve discovered the root of your fear.

5. Construct a worst-case scenario

Mackay says,

“When a certain situation makes you nervous, try to think of the worst thing that could realistically happen. Chances are the reality won’t be as devastating as you think, and examining the possibilities ahead of time will prepare you to avoid the potential pitfalls.”

Yes, I agree, it is good to do this.

However, if you’re the type of person who already has a bad habit of immediately going to the worst-case scenario, I suggest limiting the amount of time you spend constructing the worst-case scenario.

Instead, spend your energy shifting your focus, as described in #6.

6. Shift your focus

After you construct a worst-case scenario, you want to shift your focus to potential best-case scenarios.

Think about all the possible benefits and positive by-products of facing your fear.

By focusing on the potential positive outcomes, you reduce your anxiety and worry less.

7. Expect your fears to occasionally resurface

Mackay says to accept the fact that there will still be times when you feel fear or a lack of control.

This is true. There are still things that cause me to panic or become afraid. But because I’ve faced my fears in the past, new fears don’t have as strong of a grip on me now days.

Prepare yourself as best you can (by using the tips above and the ones in the related posts listed below) to handle potential risks that may cause anxiety or fear.

Mackay’s Moral:

“Don’t let your fears get in your head — get ahead of your fears.”

Once you begin to overcome some of your fears, you’ll be eager and ready to set more goals for yourself.

And if you want to not just set goals but achieve them, I invite you to subscribe to my newsletter. When you do you’ll receive a complimentary 8-Step Goal-Achievement Plan.

Related Posts:

• How to Make the Risk of Starting Your Own Business Doable
• How to Hack Your Way to a More Passionate Life and Career
• How to Enrich Your Life With New Passions
• When Was the Last Time You Challenged Your Limits?
• 10 Lessons I’ve Learned From 10 Years of Freelancing
• Be Honest: Is Your Comfort Zone Really All That Comfortable?
• Make 2018 the Year of the Right Regrets
• 7 Small Things You Can Do to Have a Good Life

The weather is finally getting warmer! For me, this means it’s the beginning of stand up paddle boarding season.

paNASH owner Lori Bumgarner with QuickBlade owner Jim Terrell

Just last week I had the opportunity to train with former canoeing Olympian and pro paddle boarder, Jim Terrell, also owner of Quickblade Paddles.

He taught me advanced level paddle techniques so I can increase my speed and perfect my paddle stroke.

If it’s not already obvious, stand up paddling (SUP) is one of my passions.

In fact, I love it so much, I’ve found a way to incorporate it into my passion and career coaching business.

How, you might ask?

Well, every paddle season, I take my clients out for a beginner SUP lesson. This is easy to do since I have two paddle boards and have previous experience teaching beginners.

The purpose of taking clients out paddle boarding is to get them out of their regular environment which gives them a different perspective on their current situation.

It also melts away their current stresses and rejuvenates their thought process.

The session starts with about 20 minutes of basic SUP instruction for them to start feeling comfortable on a board.

At first they’re worried about falling off the board into the water. It’s all they can think about as they attempt to stand up on the board for the first time.

paNASH client

Once they start to get the hang of it, we begin our typical career coaching discussion to go over the client’s current needs as we paddle down the river.

When we head back toward the harbor, I usually ask the client,

“When was the last time you thought about falling in the water?”

They suddenly realize they haven’t thought about it all. It’s kind of like a light bulb moment where they realize they accomplished something they weren’t sure they’d be able to do.

At that moment I can see a huge boost in their confidence.

They begin noticing all the nature surrounding them and realize how much the water has calmed them from their worries and stresses about their career troubles.

That’s when they usually say to me,

“This was wonderful. It was just what I needed. And it was fun!”

I love to hear that from my clients.

What they don’t expect though are all the parallels between the beginner SUP lesson and the life and career lessons from our coaching sessions.

At the end of the paddle session, I give my clients a copy of those lessons for them to keep and to remember.

© paNASH | not available for republication

13 LIFE AND CAREER LESSONS FROM SUP

SUP: Always be safe – use proper equipment, stay out of boat traffic, know when to return to lower your center of gravity.

Life and Career: Prepare and plan for potential life and career bumps and crises.

SUP: Select correct fit for board size and paddle length.

Life and Career: Understand the importance of fit for career choice.

SUP: Hold the paddle correctly.

Life and Career: Use the tools you’ve been given to succeed correctly.

SUP: Place your hands on the paddle at 90 degree angles, keeping elbows/arms straight, allowing you to dig the paddle deeper into the water. (Biggest mistake for beginners: Not putting their paddle in the water deep enough.)

Life and Career: Reach further and dig deeper. You will learn more about yourself.

SUP: Keep your paddle close to the board’s rails so you can paddle straight.

Life and Career: Keep close to your core values to stay on the straight and narrow path.

SUP: A wider stance on the board makes the board more stable.

Life and Career: A wider network and a wider set of skills equals a more stable career.

SUP: Keep your head up and yours eyes straight ahead when standing up. (Don’t look down, look straight ahead.)

Life and Career: Keep your eye on the horizon. Don’t look down and don’t look back.

SUP: Once up, you will stabilize as soon as you put your paddle into the water.

Life and Career: You have to stand up and risk feeling insecure before you can feel secure again. A little fear, discomfort and unstableness can be a good thing.

SUP: If you fall, you should fall away from the board. Get back on the board in the middle from the side, never from the back of the board.

Life and Career: If you fall, get back up. There’s no need to start all over. Just pick up in the middle where you left off.

SUP: Stay on the sides of the river (10–20 yards from river bank), do not cross in front of boats or barges, and do not paddle in middle of river when there’s boat traffic.

Life and Career: Stay out of the middle of unnecessary drama.

SUP: Pay attention to the river’s current – when it’s stronger, go upstream first so you won’t be too fatigued coming back.

Life and Career: When feeling overwhelmed, it’s best to deal with the bigger/tougher issues first so you won’t have to exert too much energy when you’re already tired at the end of a task.

SUP: Handle wake by paddling straight into the waves or return to your knees to lower your center of gravity.

Life and Career: Face challenges head on, and know how to pick your battles.

SUP: Pay attention to headwinds and tailwinds. Tailwinds are easier; headwinds are good training to make you a stronger paddler when done safely.

Life and Career: Struggle doesn’t always equal failure, and ease doesn’t always equal success.

One of the reasons why I love sports and recreational activities like SUP so much is because of all the life lessons they provide us.

What are your passions? What life lessons have you gained from them? Please respond and share!

Related Posts

• How New Passions Can Be an Answer to Old Prayers
• How to Make Money, Stay in Shape, and Be Creative: Combine Your Passions to Create Opportunity
• How to Cope With Feeling Trapped in Your Career

Case Study

In fact, after my clients have successfully completed the job search component of my career coaching program, I then coach them on what they are to do on the new job.

Not just in the first 90 days, but in each quarter of that first year.

For example, Jamie is a client who first came to me having not been able to find a job in two and a half years. This rejection put her confidence at an all-time low.

She knew she must’ve been doing something wrong and needed to figure out how to correct her approach.

As soon as Jamie started the coaching program, she realized just how little she knew about doing a job search. The coaching revealed those blind spots to her.

Once Jamie applied what I taught her about the job search, her confidence went through the roof!

After only four coaching sessions, Jamie received a job offer. In fact, when the hiring manager called to offer her the job he said,

“By the way, you gave a really good interview. Do you think you could help my mom…she has an interview coming up next week?”

Once Jamie accepted the offer, I told her we could now use her remaining sessions to focus on helping her get promoted within the year.

She said the company’s rule was that an employee can’t be promoted until they’ve been with the company a full year.

I told her that doesn’t mean we can’t start planning now.

And within nine months of starting her new job, the company was already looking at promoting Jamie.

The Most Important Thing to Do in the First 90 Days on a New Job

To be successful in any new job, one of the most important things a new employee should do in the first 90 days is get to know as many people as possible.

This actually includes getting to know those in higher positions. Even C-suite level executives.

When I first suggest making an appointment to meet with a VP or CEO, I get a funny look from my clients.

Their immediate response is,

“I can’t go in and ask for a meeting with the CEO! I’m just the new guy!”

My response is,

“Exactly!”

If there’s ever a time it makes sense to schedule an appointment with a higher-up, it’s when you’re new.

Why?

Because your newness is the reason you want to learn as much about the company as you can and meet as many people as you can.

And, because you’re new, it won’t look weird that you’re scheduling such an appointment.

If you wait until you’ve been there six months or more to try to schedule an appointment, then it will really look weird!

Throughout the first year and beyond, you should also remember to think of your employer as your client, as I discuss in my post How to Think Like an Entrepreneur (Even When You’re Not One).

Are You In a New Job?

Career coaching isn’t just about helping you with the short-term goal of finding your next job.

It’s also about helping you achieve your long-term goals over the course of your entire career. (Check out What You Need to Know to Ensure A Successful Career.)

Have you recently started a new job or are you about to start one?

My Career Growth service program will help you know what else you need to do in the first 90 days, and in the other three quarters of your first year on the job.

To get started on your short-term and long-term career goals, subscribe to my newsletter and receive a complimentary 8-Step Goal-Achievement Plan. This plan doesn’t just teach goal-setting. It leads to goal-achievement!

Related Posts:

• Career Advice No One Will Ever Share With You
• How to Think Like an Entrepreneur (Even When You’re Not One)
• What You Need to Know to Ensure a Successful Career