In my previous post I offered up a couple of tips to help choose a business name. For me, that was one of the two most difficult parts about starting a business. The other was overcoming my own fears. Those fears held me back from branching out on my own and it took a long time for me to muster the courage to push past them and actually start a business.

This article is a two-parter. In this part, I will enumerate the fears that prevented me from starting a business sooner and provide some advice that might help others overcome their own fears and realize that starting a business is not as difficult or as scary as your conscience might have you believe.

Your First Opponent

Before you start your business you will already have one opponent: your own head. In your head is where that fear lives and it is also where the psychological battles will take place that will either lead you to or prevent you from starting your own business.

When it came to starting my own business I had many fears. I had lots of optimism and excitement too, but the fears were what lingered, always trying to stamp out that excitement. I couldn’t stop thinking about failure, or letting a customer down, or all of the legal, financial, and tax obligations and situations I might run into, or even of not knowing what I had gotten myself into. There were so many unknowns and trying to identify them all overwhelmed me.

Fortunately, the fears holding me back from starting a business were only in my head. They were not the present and visible fears that might trigger a fight-or-flight response. My fears were a form of anxiety based on my perception of the future. It occurred to me that I would not have to face those fears until I took action. That meant I could prepare myself in order to take on those challenges.

That’s when I learned that overcoming fear isn’t a tactical effort, it’s strategic.

I have a recommendation for anyone who might be holding back from starting a business because they are afraid of the risks and unknowns. Introspect. Ask yourself what you are afraid of and then ask yourself why you are afraid of that thing. Eventually you will get to the root of your fears. For example, you might discover that you aren’t so much afraid of quitting your job as you are of losing touch with friends or not being able to pay your mortgage. These fears are a lot more specific and easier to address.

Leave Your Comfort Zone. A Lot.

An introspection of my own pre-startup fears helped me realize that most of my fears were based on my resistance to change. I had held the same job for several years, had a handle on taking care of myself, and had plenty of free time to hang out with friends and family. I was comfortable with my life but the constant thought of changing a major part of it made me uncomfortable.

If you are not one who regularly leaves your comfort zone to try new things but you want to start a business then you should consider introducing some change in your life just to become more comfortable with change. The idea is to game your conscience by going outside of your comfort zone in small but positive ways. When you start feeling good about those differences and become accustomed to trying out new things, introduce some slightly bigger changes. Remember to choose things that will have a positive impact on you though! If you’re not comfortable being the center of attention then don’t go to a ball game and streak across the outfield. Instead, try joining a baseball bat spin race between innings. There will be plenty of eyes on you and you’re guaranteed to dizzily walk away with a grin on your face instead of cuffs on your wrists.

Find a subject or habit that you don’t deviate from and purposefully branch out. If you are a picky eater then try something exotic but mild tasting like Ethiopian or Thai. Don’t like learning about history or geography? Take a trip to an interactive museum, historic landmark, or national park. I found spelunking to be spooky but still gratifying. Is your lifestyle somewhat sedentary? Join a beach volleyball league, take snowboarding lessons, or try out wakeboarding. You can even take up a new hobby that will require you to learn a lot about something you really enjoy.

By the time you go to fill out the paperwork for your new business it won’t be any more uncomfortable than your first time jumping off the high dive into a swimming pool.

Find Support From Everyone

Before you think about putting your product on Kickstarter or pitching to investors, toss your idea out to anyone and everyone you find yourself in a conversation with day-to-day. There are two goals here: refine your business idea and gather some plain old encouragement.

Telling people that you are starting a business will help you become a better spokesperson for your business. You will need to get good at this eventually because regardless of whether or not you are making a product or providing a service you will need to sell something in order for your business to make money. If you can’t explain your idea clearly then make adjustments based on the questions and feedback that follows.

Pay attention to body language and facial expressions while you are explaining your idea for a business. If people immediately get it then you will see it in their faces. If it takes a couple of tries to get your idea across then you might see looks of confusion. Follow up with your own questions to encourage feedback too. People don’t always volunteer criticism so you might have to coax it out.

Talk to a lot of people about your idea. Since your business probably won’t be focused on your friends and family it’s important for you to ask a broader range of people than those in your inner circle of trust. Try telling a familiar stranger such as the person who cleans your teeth or cuts your hair about your business idea. The feedback will teach you something. Another opportunity to talk business with a stranger is when you have just been introduced and they ask you what you do for a living.

After you have refined your idea and can explain it well then you should be able to notice the encouragement when you tell people about your idea. This is a great time to include friends and family, they will be a great source of enthusiasm. They will probably even bring up your idea periodically to check on your progress, which is good incentive with just a little bit of pressure to keep you moving forward.

Once you’ve established that you are not crazy, that you have a well-thought out idea for a business, and people are excited about your endeavor then it’s time to follow through. Hop in your car or go online and fill out the appropriate forms. Taking that first step towards starting a business will only take a few minutes and when you finish you can relax and start letting go of those fears once and for all.

Final Thoughts

Starting a new business, especially your first one, is challenging. I would wager that the reason most people never embark on that entrepreneurial adventure is fear of some kind. A fear of taking big risks, a fear of leaving a steady paycheck for debt and unknown or unpredictable income, a fear that you aren’t good enough to succeed, and so on and so on. These fears are simply your mind gone wild with exaggerations and anxiety but the mental hurdles they present are very real.

Fortunately there are ways to overcome those fears. They require some change on your part, though, and that can take time and effort. You have to get control over those emotions by slowly convincing your mind that change and the unknown can have a very big, positive, and powerful effect on your life. You do that by giving it one successful example after another. Reinforce and refine your ideas by discussing them with other people. Let your friends, family, and colleagues help alleviate your concerns and boost your confidence.

Eventually you will be ready to take the plunge and when you do, you will realize that starting a business was never anything to be afraid of.

Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer or a CPA. I don’t even have an MBA. So please, take my advice with a grain of salt. My advice is by no means comprehensive or authoritative. It is merely intended to offer help insofar as my own experience goes. Your mileage may vary.