7 Deadly Fears Preventing You from Feeling Motivated

There are plenty of motivations that should drive you inexorably toward success: money, fame, respect, authority and even more-humble carrots like stability and happiness. 

Yet, too many people can’t see past a few major demotivator to recognize what they could win if only they tried.

 The following fears function as serious discouragement against chasing your goals, but this guide offers solutions for overcoming these obstacles and feeling motivated anyway.

Rejection

Perhaps the most widespread fear, rejection prevents you from taking the risks necessary to secure success. No one enjoys failing, and frequently hearing “no” from peers and superiors is a sure-fire way to feel dispassionate about your work. 

There is no way to avoid rejection; if you strive for greatness, you will eventually hear the words “no,” “can’t,” “won’t” and “shouldn’t.” The best way to overcome this fear is to allow yourself to be rejected – over and over again – so you know what rejections will hold you back and which will thrust you forward.

Inadequacy

You don’t apply for open positions, you don’t request raises or promotions, and you don’t pursue enhanced authority or responsibilities all because you don’t feel like you aren’t good enough and don’t deserve it.

 Fear of inadequacy is linked to fear of rejection; you don’t want to learn that the reason you failed is that you are deficient in certain skills, so you choose not to act at all.

The easiest way to ensure that the feeling of not being good enough doesn’t hold you back, is to improve your skills and knowledge through great education.

Change

You wake up at the same time every morning; you watch the same shows every night and in between, you enjoy a predictable amount of the same type of work you always do. Humans are creatures of habit who prefer to develop routines, but if you refuse to change the way you live and work, you will never find motivation or success.

Change comes whether you want it to or not, so you should try to gain control of your life by directing the change. Behind fear of change is fear of uncertainty, which means you can combat your change-related fears by reducing unknown variables. Detailed plans, such as a 10-year career path will help the change feel less chaotic.

Confrontation

There are things you want and things you hate, but you don’t tell anyone because you are terrified of rocking the boat. Confrontation is a particularly common fear among women, who are culturally inculcated with the qualities of meekness and mildness.

Confronting those around you, especially your superiors, can be intimidating, but other people don’t know what you are thinking and feeling unless you tell them. Overcoming fear of confrontation is akin to overcoming shyness; it takes time, courage and plenty of practice. 

Judgement

In their minds or behind closed doors, your peers or superiors could be saying anything about you – so in an attempt to limit their judgement, you keep your head down and avoid taking risks that could provide great personal rewards.

You will never know what others truly think of you, but the fact is they rarely do. Most people are focused so wholly on their own presentation that they have little time or energy to spare on judging you. Thus, you should feel motivated to pursue success wholeheartedly; then, when you achieve it, you can be certain that judgements will be positive. 

Control 

There are two types of people: those who crave control and those who feel overwhelmed by power. For the latter group, losing control is less a fear and more a constant state; more often, this group fears any type of authority. Meanwhile, for the former group, a fear of powerlessness can be beneficial and detrimental, spurring them to seek power at any cost.

When it comes to control, balance is key. You should accept that there will be times when you cannot control actions and outcomes – like in personal relationships – but there are also times when you have the power to effect change – like in your career.

Loss

While it might feel like your fear of missing out is driving you to experience and accomplish more, in truth it is crippling your happiness, let alone your success. When there's a wrong drive, you always see someone else as better-off than you, which prompts you to jump back and forth among positions, industries and goals, hardly making progress toward any type of success. 

Other people don’t have it better than you; you just have distance from their experiences and therefore can’t see the difficulties and downsides of their current pursuits. Instead of stressing about losing opportunities, you should focus on finding motivation on your current path.

source: www.fearlessmotivation.com