The Worst Case Scenario: How to Deal with Fears When Starting a Business

Every person who has had the experience of starting a business knows the fear that comes from taking those first steps. You are putting your energy, your income and aspects of your life on the line to bring something to the market. You believe this is worth it, but how do you address those fears that just do not go away? 

The Worst Case Scenario

In his book, How to Stop Worrying and Start Living, Dale Carnegie gives a powerful formula to help deal with our anxiety-inducing fears. Honestly take a look at what you are afraid will happen. This is not a time to get wildly imaginative but to honestly assess what you are afraid of. 

Is it that you will not make enough money? Is it that your friends will see you fail? Whatever you are truly afraid of happening, make it your worst case scenario and say "Now what?" If you do not make enough money, can you find work again? If your friends see you fail, will they stick with you through it? Do you need new friends? 

Visualize yourself going through the fear that drags you down. Now visualize yourself responding to that event. You have failed at your business, learned significant principles about business and are now back at work. You have failed, but you can start again. 

Your friends have seen you fail, those who are truly lifelong friends have gathered around to support you and those who are not have left. Good riddance. 

Your family is hungry. Grateful you live in the United States, you sign up for food stamps and go look for work. Not the most dignified moment in your life, but really not that bad. You recover and you go back to work. 

In order to face your fear of the worst thing that can happen starting your business, you must do these things. Address it realistically, visualize the results of your fear happening and plan your response. At this point you are ready to face whatever may come. 

I invite you to apply to the Handshakin Startup Pre-accelerator to measure your risks and fears.  I'd love to connect with more entrepreneurs (and maybe I'll share with you what I did when I had $100,000 of student loans and then lost $8k on a previous startup).