The Fear of Success · Skool Group Leaders Network

The Fear of Success

Often undetected and misunderstood, the fear of success is very real and valid. You may have felt yourself on the brink of a breakthrough and then suddenly, everything you built up until that point comes to a standstill.

Maybe we come up with a million reasons why we plateaued but often, it’s the sneaky fear of success that subconsciously sabotaged our progression.

It’s very much related to the fear of failure, but the fear of success goes a little deeper. When we fear failure, we don’t want others to see our mistakes and lose their respect. When we fear success, we’re afraid we will lose people too. There’s this collective belief due to programming that we must sacrifice something in order to have success.

Fear of success is ultimately a fear of some kind of loss.

👉 Some of us fear we have to sacrifice time with our families.

👉 Some of us fear we will lose friends that we will have no choice but to outgrow.

👉 Some of us are comfy in our current lifestyle and fear the unknown. What will your new lifestyle look like and what won’t it look like anymore?

There is always an element of sacrifice that we fear and therefore, we unconsciously tend to sabotage our own success.

So How Do We Overcome This Fear of Success?

I’m not going to lie here. Fear of success is one hell of a challenge for me. I have struggled with this fear for a while. Each time I break down layer after layer, a new level of success comes in and then I have to break down another.

It’s like the Universe is giving me success in small doses so that I can manage the growth at a comfortable level!

And if you struggle with fear of success then practice envisioning your success coming in incrementally like this. Yes, you have to know where you are going and what you want, but if imagining the big picture feels scary, then imagine the next level first. Then the next, then the next.

And keep going. Continue taking little steps outside your comfort zone. When you notice yourself wanting to retreat back to the ways the ‘old you’ would have done things, do the opposite. Do things differently, piece by piece, one step at a time.

Another way to break through this fear is to surround yourself with people who are more successful than you. Learn from them and soak up everything you can. We become the 5 people we hang around most.

And finally — celebrate your success!

Taking time to celebrate and reflect on your achievements helps your body and brain accept success. The more your brain believes it’s possible… the more it becomes possible, and the more your brain will be able to handle it too.

Fear of Success is Real and Valid

Stemming from our basic human need to feel accepted, it makes sense that we would fear success that looks different from those outside our social circle. This is why it’s important to seek support from a coach or mentor who can encourage you and challenge you to reach for it anyway.

It can feel scary to be different, but mediocre never changed the world, did it?

Honor your fear. If you’re not scared, it means you’re not taking or contemplating risks. You have to take risks and make mistakes. Fail forward.

And remember: you are worthy of wild success!

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