Fear of Failure

There are times when we don't try new things because we are afraid. We fear the unknown. We may also fear failure. I never used to think I struggled with this but I've realized this past year how much I do. I put off getting my commercial driver's license for years -- for one I didn't have the "want to" and secondly, I was afraid of failure. After lots of stress, anxiety, and tons of study, VOILA! I passed the test!

Now I am at another crossroads where my want to and my need to don't exactly line up. I am taking Advanced Statistics (and I've NEVER EVER had a statistics class in the past). The first couple of days I was in a sort of fog where people were all speaking around me, but I didn't know the language. The old fear of failure began to creep in again. Yesterday was a turning point for me. All of a sudden, things started clicking and light bulbs started coming on.  There is still a lot for me to learn, but I know with hard work and discipline, I can do just that -- learn.  Whether I pass or fail isn't the end all (of course it could be the end of my PhD journey), but the real question is what have I learned from the experience.

So, I say all that to say, "Don't put it off anymore. Take a leap and try something new!"

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Tears to Joy: Fear of Failure

Friday, September 21, 2012

Fear of Failure

There are times when we don't try new things because we are afraid. We fear the unknown. We may also fear failure. I never used to think I struggled with this but I've realized this past year how much I do. I put off getting my commercial driver's license for years -- for one I didn't have the "want to" and secondly, I was afraid of failure. After lots of stress, anxiety, and tons of study, VOILA! I passed the test!

Now I am at another crossroads where my want to and my need to don't exactly line up. I am taking Advanced Statistics (and I've NEVER EVER had a statistics class in the past). The first couple of days I was in a sort of fog where people were all speaking around me, but I didn't know the language. The old fear of failure began to creep in again. Yesterday was a turning point for me. All of a sudden, things started clicking and light bulbs started coming on.  There is still a lot for me to learn, but I know with hard work and discipline, I can do just that -- learn.  Whether I pass or fail isn't the end all (of course it could be the end of my PhD journey), but the real question is what have I learned from the experience.

So, I say all that to say, "Don't put it off anymore. Take a leap and try something new!"

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