fear of failure

Want To See Me Doing Stand-Up Comedy Live On Stage?

One of the things I highly recommend for facing your fears in The Confident Man Program is getting up at an open-mic night and performing in front of a live audience. You’ll feel the excitement beforehand and the adrenaline rush when you’re up there, and the elation afterwards knowing that you’ve conquered most people’s biggest fear. From then on, it becomes really fun.

Given that I like to walk my talk, here’s the video of my recent graduation gig from a stand-up comedy course that I did recently. My biggest fear was losing the plot on-stage and forgetting my material. Everything was going great until about 5 minutes in… when I lost it completely! The results was hilarious. I know you’ll enjoy it:

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By Graham Stoney, ago

How To Overcome Self-Doubt

You’re feeling excited about a project and keen to move forward, and then the evil gremlins in your mind rise up and strike a blow that stops you in your tracks. Or perhaps you feel stuck in your tracks unsure even which way to move in the first place. If so, there’s a good chance you’re being held back by self-doubt.

I know the feeling all too well. The fear of failure, the procrastination, the voice in my head that says “nobody will read that article”, “nobody will come to your gig”, or “you’re gonna fuck it up in front of everybody!”. It all comes down to self-doubt and the fear of failure that lurks beneath.

So how do you overcome this evil gremlin?

Here’s what I tell myself when self-doubt strikes:

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By Graham Stoney, ago