Failure has kept me from doing a lot of things in my life, and I’m sure it has you too. Failure is nothing to be ashamed of. It’s actually a necessary part of life that often leads to success and innovation. Ironically, it still stands in the way between us and what we really want for a number of reasons. Recently, I faced my fears and made a giant leap towards a career path I’ve always wanted for myself. I’m giving you 3 tips on how I tackled my fear of failure and how you can to.

1. Figuring out what you want is not enough to overcome your fear of failure. You need to dive deeper and figure out why you want it and how you’re going to get it. If you know why you really want something, you’re less likely to be scared to go after it. Additionally, coming up with a clear plan of how you’re going to get it will minimize a lot of risks. Write down all the things you can think of that can go wrong and come up with a detailed plan of how you will avoid or fix those things if they arise. The more prepared you are, the less likely you will be to fail. Additionally, nothing will get in your way when you’re really passionate about something.
   
   
2. Stop worrying about what others think of you. This is so important but certainly not easy. I never really cared about what others thought of me except for when it came to my career. This fear of what others might say definitely stopped me from going after what I want. If you’re struggling with this, I highly recommend reading the book “The Top 5 Regrets of the Dying.” I know it’s not the positive book you typically pick up on a Monday morning to start your week. However, this will most definitely help shift your mindset. The author of the book discusses conversations she had when she was a carer of patients who were nearing the end of their life. The biggest takeaway from her patients was “Live the life you want, not the life people expect you to live.” Imagine that! People’s biggest regret in life is how they wished they lived their lives to the fullest and stopped caring what others thought. Do what is best for you.
   
   
3. Lastly, and probably most importantly, get yourself a solid support system. It can be one person or 100, as long as they are solid. We are talking quality over quantity people! The best thing I ever did for myself was cut off any and all negative and not supportive people. The second best thing I did for myself was join Beyond Boss. If you’re not apart of it, get to it! There are tons of women out there who are going through the same things you are and are ready to support you. You don’t have to tackle fear alone.