Don’t Be Paralyzed By the Fear of Starting a Business

In last month’s blog, we discussed the process of shedding the old to make way for the new.

We must take time to become introspective to find just what it is we want. It could be a new career, starting a business, or making changes to our lifestyle.

As we begin this process, we may find that we can be our own worst enemy. We may let fear self-sabotage our chances of success with any new change.

Fear is the biggest reason nurses do not start a business of their own.

Because of fear, we may talk ourselves out of ever taking the first step. Fear envelopes our emotions. It can consume us, and may paralyze us from ever even trying.

Pause for a second and consider all that nurses are confronted with daily at work. To the public, we are doing scary stuff as it is. Yet, we let fear of the unknown prevent us from developing a business?

They say 60-80% of the population has an idea for a business, but they do not enact it because they are afraid. Think of all the solutions and improvements nurses could provide to the healthcare system – and to the world for that matter – if they would just start taking the steps necessary.

When I saw the gap in the healthcare system regarding lack of appropriate routine foot care services in 2008, I had no idea how to fill the need. I remember thinking, even if I just help those in my community, that will be a good start. My business grew … and fast! I would eventually serve 24 counties in Ohio with my foot care clinic model. When I realized the need was beyond Ohio, I looked at scaling services nationally through my second business, the Foot and Nail Institute.

We cannot allow fear to prevent us from trying. Afraid of failure, afraid of what others may think, afraid of the changes necessary to make that dream a reality, or afraid of lacking the credentials to start a business.

From experience, I know it may look daunting. However, something I have realized over the years, there is a lot of smoke and mirrors out here.

Don’t be fooled by the shiny socials. Their objective is financial growth, which rarely wins out in a business model. People are seeing through it these days. Do not be intimidated by their polished pictures and buzz words. Trust me, the deeper you get into building, the more you will learn the shiny pennies really aren’t all of that. They are just selling you on the concept itself. It often lacks substance on the back end.

I have witnessed some businesses who were on track to success but they burned out before they reached their full potential. A lot of transitioning takes place in business development, both personally and professionally. Some of these businesses become successful and then self-sabotage.

Some businesses achieve success, but go out of business prematurely because they think they have hit their limit. They get comfortable and quit pushing forward for growth. They may need to hire or scale their business, but fear prevents them from taking that next step.

Fear is a powerful emotion. It can block us from starting, and it can halt us when we’re on track. You will be faced with obstacles to overcome when you decide to embark on any changes, but we can’t allow fear to be in the driver seat.

Don’t wait to take the next step in your professional journey. Learn more about starting a nurse-owned senior foot care business with the Foot and Nail Institute.