Overcoming fear of failure: An important part of the artisan journey!
I wish I could tell you that I have never struggled with the fear of failure, but that would be a lie. Sadly, that is very much part of my life journey, and especially my artisan journey. Even though I often proclaim that I am not “human”, I am a Phoenix; the human part of me has all the human struggles.
What can trigger the fear of failure?
That’s a really good question, isn’t it? For me, the following are what trigger it:
* The verbal gatekeepers: Verbal gatekeepers are individuals who have been artisans (any variety) for a long time, and tell you that you will never succeed. That you are too late to the game. Basically, they discourage you for whatever reason they might have.
- Pouring hours upon hours into learning new techniques, researching business-related knowledge, and, of course, the hundreds of hours you spend creating your products. All just to put it out there, and it never gets noticed. Let’s not even begin with spending hundreds of dollars on materials to produce your artisan craft, list them, and nothing sells. It’s disheartening.
* Your mind works against you. Fun fact, as humans, we are actually wired to pay more attention to negative things than positive. We scan for possible danger all the time. Remembering negative things much longer than something positive. Which means that once the fear of failure is introduced into the mind, it is difficult to shake for some.
* The ever-popular self-defeating belief that you are not good enough. That everyone else is so much better. Nobody likes what you create; that is why it isn’t selling. You don’t deserve to be successful
Did any of that sound familiar to you? You don’t have to be an artist to experience this. You just have to be at least in part human and breathing.
Fear of failure is NOT allowed to win!
If I were to allow my fears to stop me, I would have given in to my depression periods a long time ago. I would have stopped creating altogether. My fairly new handmade treasures, handmade beaded jewelry, arts, etc., shop would never have opened.
On a very personal and private note, I would have remained in either of my very toxic marriages. I sure heard “Nobody else will ever want you” often enough. Right along with many emotionally damaging and highly abusive things, I heard from my foster mother and sister since I was a toddler. Maybe one day I will tell you about my journey of healing from abuse, but not right now.
When it comes to the fear of failure, I serve it an eviction notice as quickly as possible. To allow any type of negative emotions, fears, or phobias to remain and fester is detrimental to your mental health.
How I fight my fear of failure every time it rears its ugly head!
By taking what triggers it apart! Each of the points I listed above has a hidden part to it, which, once you recognize it, nullifies it.
The Gatekeepers: Let’s be real, if fear of failure in a field that is oversaturated, you need to rewire your thinking. Here is the thing: just because a field is oversaturated doesn’t mean there isn’t a place for you. Unless you are copying everyone else, and I mean down to the smallest detail 100% of the time, you are offering something exciting and new. Artisan work evolves all the time. Different people are looking for different things. Those who gatekeep often see you as potential competition. Maybe not right away, but if you have talent, once you get discovered, you will be.
Add to this that they are going by their own personal opinions. I have a saying that is a bit crude yet very accurate:
“Opinions are like assholes, everyone has one!”
Don’t let the opinions of other people be the thing that stops you. If this is your fear-of-failure trigger, remember that those gatekeepers don’t represent all of humanity. They do this for their own agenda.
No sales frustrations: Oh, trust me, I am currently in that phase myself. I work about 80 hours a week on creating my beautiful handmade offerings and behind-the-scenes work. Seeing a big, fat zero in the sales column makes me want to cry. That leads right into and compounds with my mind working against me. This, more than any other trigger point, can lead me to the fear of failure.
When it triggers my fear that I will never make a sale, and fail spectacularly, I remind myself of this:
1. Each time I “failed” in the past, I learned how not to do something. It wasn’t a failure; it was a teaching moment.
2. Sometimes you are not in the right place (location / mentally), or the time is not right yet for you to fully commit to your dream. (Obligations, Time Management, skill level)
3. You just started. To quote a cliche platitude: “Rome wasn’t built in a day!”
4. You are only one person. There is only so much you can do in a day. Going from creation to making a sale has many moving parts and steps in between. You are doing all of those steps alone and turning those parts. Give yourself some grace, please.
Don’t give up!
For me personally, failing is not even an option. I have bills to pay, and I am not getting any younger. This is my dream. My soul and heart align with what I am doing now. I have been given these many talents for a reason. I have honed them privately in a hobby way for many years. Thousands of dollars worth of products have been given away by me, before I stepped into making this my livelihood.
Those who received the free fruits of my labor will rarely buy from me. As one lady said to me once: “Why would I buy the milk, when you have given the cow away for free? I’ll just wait until you feel generous again. Hint, my birthday is coming up!”
That was a hell of a wakeup call. My generous heart trained people to feel entitled to my labor, and once you do that, they’ll never buy from you.
I no longer have an income from anywhere else. My personal life and location don’t allow me to seek out another job. As scary as that sounds, it’s actually a benefit too. It means I have to be all in to make my dream successful.
One more thought:
One of my biggest fears, and which drives my daughters nuts, is the fear of becoming a financial burden. No matter how impossible things seemed at times, I have always been financially independent. Most of the time, I just barely squeaked by. There was no extra for savings, but my bills were paid on time.
Now, I sit here and know that unless I start making sales soon, my biggest fear will come true for a while. Both of my daughters, the one I live with, and the one who is the owner of the creative hub are fully aware of it. They tell me to stop worrying and just keep creating. This is the biggest blessing I have, right now.
I WILL SUCCEED! Failure is not an option for me. My almost 13-year-old granddaughter is watching me work my ass off to build something meaningful to me. She is watching the women in my bloodline work hard, reach for their dreams, and have a never-give-up attitude. She sees firsthand what love, mutual respect, honesty, and a strong work ethic look like.
AS a mother and a grandmother, I am a role model. Right now, along with all that I mentioned, she is watching me swallow my pride and ask for help. She is watching me accept that help, even if it hurts to have to accept it. She is watching her mother and aunt (in different ways) as the support network for me. It’s teaching her invaluable lessons.
Now my question for you!
What triggers your fear of failure the most, and how do you overcome it?
As always, thank you for stopping by and joining me on my artisan journey to success. If you enjoy my blog posts, don’t forget to sign up for my once-a-month newsletter. Browse around my shop, and if you see something you love, support me with your purchase.
Until next time.
Love, light, and much success to you!
Artisan Regina L.
