Latest news with #fear
Fast Company
2 days ago
- Business
- Fast Company
How to turn fear into fuel as a tech entrepreneur
When something scares you, what's your gut reaction? Do you dodge it, chip away at it slowly, or face it head-on? As entrepreneurs, fear is a big part of our job. We're all familiar with the usual suspects: fear of embarrassment, fear of missing out on a valuable opportunity, fear of not being good enough (imposter syndrome, anyone?), and of course, the fear of failure. After starting Wistia with my co-founder, Brendan, and growing it over the past 18 years, we've faced fear head-on and learned this: fear is a killer in the startup world. It can stop the most talented entrepreneurs before they even begin, holding them back from chasing ideas that could change everything. Afraid to pitch that investor? Nervous about launching that newsletter? We've all been there. But here's the thing: tackling those fears head-on is exactly how you win in business. Why? Because taking risks is how we grow and innovate. If you aren't scaring yourself and failing along the way, progress will be slow to come by. Some of the best lessons I learned began with failure. HARNESSING YOUR FEAR The most successful founders know how to manage fear and turn it into fuel for themselves and their businesses. This is easier said than done. I'm still learning how to harness fear myself, but here are some tips I've learned along the way: Don't Overthink When I have the choice of how to react to a situation that I'm fearful of, I prefer to address it as quickly as possible by running face-first into the fear. I assess the situation and if the fear is driven by something I can control, I prefer to handle it head-on. The faster I can compress the time fear has to mess with me, the better. It stops me from overthinking and keeps me from getting stuck. Plus, it speeds everything up—face the fear, take the risk, and move forward. Separate Fear From Excitement Fear and excitement can feel weirdly similar—especially when you care deeply about the situation. The key is learning to separate them. Recognizing that what you're feeling might actually stem from excitement and passion can help you clear your head and make better decisions. Take public speaking, for example. You might think, 'Why can't I stop obsessing over this?' At first, it feels like fear—because you care what people think. But that care? That's passion. That's excitement about connecting with an audience. And if you can channel that energy, you can flip it from fear to fuel. It's all about recognizing the difference. Fear holds you back; excitement pushes you forward. Use it. Don't Fall For The 'Spotlight Effect' Many of us fall victim to the spotlight effect, which is when you overestimate how much others are noticing and focusing on your actions. In reality, others aren't paying as close attention to you as you think, especially when you're first getting started with a company. You are also often your own worst critic. Go launch that newsletter. Start that LinkedIn page. It might be your first step toward the most remarkable thing you ever do. The best part about starting is that nobody is looking. Of all the times to fail, it's the best. So yes, being an entrepreneur is all about fear. Fear of failing, fear of making the wrong decision, and sometimes even fear of success. At the end of the day, the difference between winning and losing is simple: how you face your fears. Don't let fear dictate your future. Feel it, lean into it, and take the shot anyway. That's where growth happens.
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
KHADIJA KHAN: I don't approve of burning books, but the man on trial for setting fire to a Koran has a right to protest, whatever Islamists and their apologists say
Growing up in my native Pakistan, I came to the conclusion that Islam was discriminatory and misogynistic. It was a religion that had been weaponised to keep independent-thinking women like me, and anyone who opposes the fundamentalists, in their place by fear. I'd watched, appalled, at news footage of people being lynched in the street or burned alive for raising the questions about Islam I had privately asked myself.
Forbes
6 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
Why Courageous Cultures Outperform Safe Ones
Woman hands on hips. Unlocking collective potential requires instilling courage at scale. Let's be honest—we're operating in a world that would make even the most seasoned business veterans feel like they're flying blind. Generative AI is reshaping entire industries overnight. Geopolitical tensions are rewriting supply chains. Market volatility has become the only constant. But here's what keeps me up at night, and what should be keeping you up too: the biggest threat to your organization isn't coming from the outside. It's brewing quietly within your own walls, in every meeting where brilliant ideas go unspoken, in every moment when your people choose safety over truth. It's fear. And it's costing you more than you realize. When fear becomes the driving force behind decisions, it doesn't just shut down potential—it systematically dismantles your competitive advantage. I've witnessed it countless times: organizations where employees tiptoe around tough conversations, where innovation dies in committee rooms, where the status quo becomes a fortress rather than a launching pad. The numbers tell a stark story. Research shared in Korn Ferry's 2025 Global Insights Report reveals that 69% of employees withhold their ideas due to fear of rejection or ridicule. Think about that for a moment—nearly seven out of ten people in your organization are sitting on potentially game-changing insights because they're afraid of looking foolish. As I wrote in The Courage Gap: But it gets worse. When McKinsey studied psychological safety in the workplace, they found that 85% of employees don't feel comfortable challenging their manager, even when pressured to act unethically. We're not just talking about missed opportunities here; we're talking about cultures that inadvertently enable poor judgment and ethical blind spots. Harvard's Robert Kegan puts it brilliantly in his research: employees spend enormous energy trying to "look good" rather than being good at what they do. This self-protective behavior doesn't just waste time—it creates the very vulnerabilities organizations are trying to avoid. Now, before you roll your eyes and think this is some touchy-feely leadership fluff, let me share what happens when organizations flip the script and make courage their competitive strategy. Companies that prioritize psychological safety and courageous leadership report 30% higher levels of innovation and 40% greater employee engagement, according to Korn Ferry's research. Google's Project Aristotle found that psychological safety was the single most important factor distinguishing high-performing teams from the rest. This isn't about creating a warm, fuzzy workplace where everyone gets a participation trophy. This is about building an environment where your smartest people feel safe to challenge assumptions, where failure becomes fuel for innovation, and where calculated risks are celebrated, not punished. I'll never forget sitting in a town hall meeting where an employee asked about a recent CRM system failure. The CEO's response? Defensive dismissal, treating the question as trivial compared to "bigger challenges." In that moment, he didn't just shut down one person—he sent a clear message to everyone in that room that discussing failures was off-limits. Contrast that with leaders who say, "Here's what we tried, here's how it went sideways, and here's what we learned." When you normalize failure as part of innovation, you give your team permission to take the very risks that create breakthrough moments. Creating psychological safety isn't about lowering standards—it's about raising the quality of conversations. When people feel secure enough to admit what they don't know, to challenge decisions respectfully, and to surface problems early, you're not just building trust. You're building an early warning system that prevents small issues from becoming expensive disasters. Here's the truth that many organizations miss: courage is learnable. It's not some mystical quality that people either have or don't have. Research from the Center for Creative Leadership shows that organizations investing in courage-building leadership development see 25% improvement in decision-making speed and 35% better crisis response. It's why courage is not a 'nice to have' in today's business landscape—it's non-negotiable. Yet its also far from the norm. When I work with executive teams, I often ask them to calculate the cost of their organization's fear - the hidden, often delayed or usually imperceptible 'timidity tax' being exacted across their organization. How many ideas never made it to the table? How many problems festered because no one wanted to be the bearer of bad news? How many talented people walked away because they felt voiceless? How many people didn't go the extra mile because they had become so jaded by the lack of honesty and courage of those at the top? The cost is as immeasurable as the math is sobering. But the flip side—the ROI of courage—is equally compelling. Organizations with courageous cultures don't just weather storms better; they use volatility as a competitive advantage. They make faster decisions because people aren't paralyzed by perfectionism. They innovate more boldly because failure isn't career suicide. Most importantly, they attract and retain the bold thinking, risk-ready kind of talent that thrives on challenge and drives results. Building a culture of courage won't happen overnight, and it certainly won't happen by accident. It requires leaders who are willing to go first—to model vulnerability, to celebrate intelligent failures, and to consistently choose truth over comfort. The question isn't whether your organization needs more courage. The question is whether you're brave enough to build it. Because in today's business landscape, the organizations that thrive won't be the ones that played it safest and stuck with old paradigms that enabled fear to flourish and hold potential dormant. They'll be the ones that dared to unlock the full potential of their people. That's not just good leadership. That's smart business. Dr Margie Warrell is a leadership advisor and keynote speaker focused on emboldening braver leaders for better outcomes on every measure that matters. Her latest book is The Courage Gap. Follow on LinkedIn.
Forbes
6 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
5 ChatGPT Prompts To Reveal What You're Really Afraid Of
5 ChatGPT prompts to reveal what you're really afraid of Fear runs your life disguised as logic. You call it hesitation. You explain it away. But you're running from something. Judgment, exposure, or being wrong. You freeze before big decisions. You make excuses when opportunity knocks. What if confronting these hidden fears could transform your business faster than any strategy or tactic ever could? These prompts pull out the real fears holding you back so you can look them in the eye. Copy, paste and edit the square brackets in ChatGPT, and keep the same chat window open so the context carries through. You already have the answer. Deep down, you know exactly what's stopping you. Maybe it's an uncomfortable truth about your business model or a conversation you're avoiding. The cost of ignoring it grows every day. But your success depends on facing what you're pretending not to see. You need to move forward with your eyes wide open. "Based on what you know about me and my business from our conversations, what might I be pretending not to know? Look for patterns in my questions, concerns, or areas where I seem to circle back repeatedly. Identify three specific blind spots or uncomfortable truths I might be avoiding. For each one, explain why facing this reality would benefit me and what the cost of continued avoidance might be. Ask for more detail if required." Everyone performs for someone. You make choices based on what you think others expect, even when no one's watching. This invisible audience shapes your business decisions more than you realize. Sometimes it's past critics. Sometimes it's imaginary judges. Either way, their opinions shouldn't run your life. Freedom comes when you build for yourself, not for the crowd. "Based on our previous conversations, analyze whose judgment or opinions might be influencing my decisions and holding me back. Identify three specific 'invisible audiences' I seem concerned about pleasing or avoiding criticism from. For each one, suggest what I might do differently if I wasn't concerned about their judgment. Then, help me create three power statements I can use when I notice myself making decisions based on others' expectations rather than my own values. Ask for more detail if required." Playing safe feels comfortable but costs more than you think. That business pivot you're putting off. The difficult client conversation you're avoiding. The process you know needs changing. Each day of delay has a price tag. When you add it up, inaction often costs more than action. Confront it head on. Understand the price you're paying by not taking action. Stop making excuses and start making progress. "Based on what you know about my business challenges and goals, help me calculate the real cost of avoiding the difficult actions I know I should take. First, identify three important actions I seem hesitant about based on our previous conversations. For each one, calculate: 1) The weekly financial cost of inaction, 2) The monthly opportunity cost, 3) The emotional and reputation cost over one year. Present the total cost for each avoided action and ask which one I'd like to address first. Ask for more detail if required." The stories you tell yourself create your reality. "I'm not good with numbers." "I can't sell." "I'm not ready yet." These narratives feel like protection but actually lock you in place. When I built my social media agency to run without me, I had to rewrite the story that I needed to be involved in every client decision. You can change any narrative that's keeping you small. Start with spotting the lies you've been telling yourself. "Based on our conversations, identify three limiting stories I seem to be telling myself about my abilities, potential, or circumstances. For each story, provide: 1) Evidence from my past successes that contradicts this limiting belief, 2) A more empowering alternative narrative I could adopt, and 3) One immediate action I could take that would begin to rewrite this story. Present these in a clear, direct format that challenges me to see the gap between my self-perception and reality. Ask for more detail if required." Failure isn't the only thing that scares you. Success brings change, attention, and responsibility. It means stepping into a bigger version of yourself. The fear of what might happen if everything goes right can be more paralyzing than the fear of what might go wrong. Recognizing this counter-intuitive barrier might be your biggest breakthrough. "Based on what you know about my personality and goals, help me explore what might scare me about actually succeeding. First, describe three specific ways my life would change if I achieved everything I'm working toward. For each scenario, identify: 1) What new responsibilities or expectations this success would create, 2) What identity shifts I would need to make, and 3) What relationships might be challenged by this new reality. Present this analysis in a way that helps me see how fear of success might be influencing my current actions. Ask for more detail if required." When you name the fear, it shrinks. When you ignore it, it runs the show. Every business decision is filtered through what you're afraid might happen. Face what you're avoiding. Notice who you're performing for. Calculate the cost of inaction. Question the stories holding you back. And consider what scares you about success. Naming these fears strips them of power. You can't outrun what you refuse to see. The person you become by facing your fears is infinitely more powerful than the one who hides from them. Get all my best ChatGPT content prompts.
Daily Mail
27-05-2025
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Kamikaze drones so lethal that if you're spotted by one, you're dead: These new un-jammable weapons are devastating, reveals RICHARD PENDLEBURY. No wonder Ukrainians call them 'The Monster'
It's like the monster from your dreams, soldiers here say. The one you can't escape, however hard you try. If you're chosen as the target, well, that's it for you, game over. A favourite tactic of this recently introduced, but already widely feared, predator is to lie in wait in a field beside a road.
