What does it really mean to be fearless? That’s the question I was contemplating as I stood in my bathroom, drying my hair!

Does it mean you don’t feel any fear at all? Or does it mean you actually feel the fear but choose to transcend it?

Being an entrepreneur and starting out any type of new venture, forces you to not only think about the unknown but also face all the gut-wrenching feelings that go along with launching your: startup, product or idea.

It’s scary!

It’s terrifying!

With every step you take getting closer to the end goal, the thoughts and voices become louder and louder!

You know exactly the thoughts and voices I’m talking about!

“What if I launch my product and nobody buys it?”

“What if I’m able to sell it but people hate it?”

“What if they leave nasty comments and reviews?”

This fear is one of the main reasons many people start something but never actually finish!

In my opinion, in majority of cases, this fear or voice is the only thing standing between you and your success.

It’s such a huge part that I dedicated an entire section in my new course, How to Create + Sell Your Own Online Courses, addressing the common reasons why we abandon creating and launching an idea.

I once struggled with the same fear throughout launching my own product!

The voice I mentioned got louder and louder as I kept getting closer and closer to the finish line.

I can’t tell you how many times I wanted to give up. At least several times every day!

But I didn’t, I kept going!

Not because I’m a super human! Or because one starry night I was touched by an angel and I’m forever healed of all fears.

The fear was there and still is!

I still feel the fear every time I write a blog post, every time I send out an email blast, every time I tweet or post anything on Facebook!

The fear exists every time I put myself out there!

I’m absolutely positive it will always be there; anytime I start any new venture!

You might think I’m out of my mind sharing my struggles with you!

After all, shouldn’t I be the one with all the answers?

But here is the thing; there is not anything weak or negative about feeling this fear or having doubts; we just need to recognize it and find a way to move past it.

What’s holding you back?

The source of fear is different for everyone!

My fear was feeding off of my own personal struggles and baggage.

For me, it was the fear of being seen!

It was so much safer to hide behind someone else!

If I worked hard and contributed towards someone’s goals (in my case, my husband) and if everything went well then I can tell myself I’m really great at this stuff. On the other hand, if it didn’t turn out good then it wasn’t really entirely up to me and he will be there to share the blame.

I didn’t get hit by a banana peel one day and suddenly had this revelation!

I came to this conclusion because every time the fearful thoughts popped up it said, “Everything was great the way it was, just go back and support his efforts, what’s so wrong about that?”

What’s your reasons?

Why do you feel fearful and doubtful?

Ask and you shall receive!

Your fear might be coming from a different place!

So you need to figure out where this doubt and fear is coming from! Recognizing that is the first and most important step to transcending this!

All you have to do is ask yourself; it’s as simple as that!

We get so bombarded and lost in these thoughts that our reality becomes all about that! 24X7

We get so preoccupied with them that they become our reality; they rule our decisions, actions and our lives.

Your reality is much bigger than that!

encouraging is that at any moment you have access to all of it.

Your thoughts are not you! If you just step away from your thoughts and observe like a third person would, you’ll see how small they are and you’ll be able to see the entire picture!

Therefore, the next time these fearful and doubtful thoughts decide to take you for a swim in  turbulent waters, say no thank you! Step out of the water and watch it from afar!

It is only then you will see that it was just a part of the story. A little farther out, the water is actually much calmer and closer to where you’re standing by the shore, it’s actually warm and sunny!

Just step away, observe the thoughts and once you have separated yourself from these thoughts, ask yourself: “Where is this fear coming from?”

Due to the fact that you are not lost in these thoughts and you’ve been able to separate yourself from them, the answer will be right there in front of you!

As simple as that!

You’ll be able to see that your fear is not this intangible emotional event that is taking you for a ride. You have figured out where it’s coming from and can logically deal with it!

Keep yourself Accountable

Once I realized my fear was  not coming from a real and healthy place (they never do), I positioned a plan in place to help me keep moving forward.

Write down your goals and review them every day
I wrote down my short term and long term goals.

For my short term goals, I gave myself six months to finish my first product and launch my website.

I kept a copy of this goal on my phone with a reminder that popped up every morning at 8am; forcing myself to review it every single morning.

I was still delayed by a couple of months but the alternative was drifting along and taking years instead of months.

You can do the same with your goals; write them down, set a reminder to look at them every single day to help you stay on track!

Share your goals with people you trust
I shared my goals with three of my closest friends; people I trusted. I didn’t go into any details but just let them know that I was starting a new venture and hoping to have it up and running in six months.

I knew I had their support and they were rooting for me!

Keeping the mental image of seeing their happy faces and hearing their encouraging words as I shared the big news that I finally launched my new venture; it was the biggest weapon in my arsenal against the fearful thoughts.

Every time the fearful thoughts popped up, I reminded myself what an amazing feeling it was to see my friends’ reaction when I finally shared the big news!

I encourage you to do the same for yourself!

Share your plans with someone you trust. It can be your spouse, parent or a good friend!

Someone that you know will be on your corner and root for your success!

If this were the last day of your life…
I played a little game with myself called- if this were the last day of my life!

Every time the fearful thoughts sneaked their way in, I’d ask myself, “If this were the last day of my life, would I regret that I gave into my fears?”

When you look at it from that perspective you realize none of the things you were fearful about really matter!

So what if you launched your product and nobody bought it! It’s not the end of the world! There are so many different ways to figure out where the problem is, fix it and try again.

Nothing is really that permanent.

Reaching the end of my life and realizing that I had every opportunity to move towards my dreams and not taking advantage of it, is the only permanent thing.

It’s the only irreversible thing!

And the thought of that was so much worse than all the other possible and imaginary horrible scenarios my mind was making up.