Is Opportunity Knocking?
Has that new job posting on your company’s intranet caught your eye? After reviewing the job description, this seems like a perfect fit…so what’s keeping you from taking action?
For many people, the answer is simple – fear. It might be fear of the unknown, fear of change, fear of failure, or maybe fear of being pushed outside of our comfort zones.
Feelings of fear, uncertainty, and doubt are completely normal when we’re about to make a significant change in our lives. How these feelings are managed determines whether opportunity is granted or passes us by.
Addressing Fear
Let’s imagine that you meet all of the requirements outlined in this job posting, but there is one that makes you completely nervous and uncomfortable – speaking and presenting to various employee groups and clients.
Speaking in front of a group is terrifying to many people, even those that do it often, and appear at ease while doing it. If that’s true , then how do they do it? The answer is simple – they’ve made a conscious decision to address their fear, and taken steps to manage it so that it’s no longer in control.
Managing Fear
Using our example of speaking in front of a group, let’s determine what steps can be taken to manage this fear.
The first step is to resolve yourself to the fact that if you really want this job, you are going to have to overcome this obstacle!
The next step is to develop an action plan to help you achieve your goal. A fear of speaking is often rooted in other fears, such as a fear of looking foolish, fear of failing in front of our peers, or of being pushed well outside of our comfort zone.
Your action plan might include attending a speaking course so you can learn and build essential basic skills. Upon gaining some confidence, you could present to small groups of peers to further practice and gain comfort in front of an audience. After having a few small presentations under your belt, you can move on to presenting to a larger group. Before you know it, what was once a huge obstacle has become a non-issue!
Everyday Obstacles
Fear can become an obstacle in our everyday routines, as well. Consider the impact that advancing technologies have had upon your workplace; changing processes and workflows that have required us to learn new software and programs.
For some people, the “old” way might have worked just fine, and the defensive measures quickly go to work, making these people appear difficult and unwilling to accommodate change, when in actuality, it’s a fear of change that’s motivating their behavior.
Accepting change and taking the steps necessary to become accustomed to doing things the “new” way not only provides a smoother transition, but also makes it easier to accept future changes.
Strategize for Success
Take a moment to identify obstacles supported by fear, and develop an action plan to overcome them to open up the door to future opportunities and successes!
Contact us!
Please contact Double C Professional Consulting Services today for more information and resources.
