Isaiah 41:13 says: "For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee."

Our quote for today is from Michael Jordan. He said: "I've missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."

Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are continuing with part 2 of our series titled, “Overcoming the Fear of Success”. 

Any time you put your problem into the Fear of Success pigeonhole, it's time to sit down and have a long heart-to-heart chat with yourself -- or with your therapist. You're being torn by conflicting pressures. You are unsure of your goals, since the things you've been telling yourself you want aren't what you really want, in view of the price involved. To use a term that's in vogue among psychologists these days, you're not being "authentic" in your dealings with yourself. And procrastination is never the answer -- it only makes matters worse.

There are two sides to every coin. No matter how desirable a goal may be, there are some negative consequences of having reached it. Fame means lack of privacy; wealth draws envy; growth fosters higher expectations; a promotion entails more responsibilities; a spectacular achievement raises the question of what you will do for an encore.

We are constantly weighing the pros and cons of possible courses of action, deciding in one instance that the advantages offset the disadvantages, in another that the price is too high. But with procrastination that process is circumvented. Instead of objectively considering the price of achieving a goal and then making a decision, the procrastinator decides by default against resolving the matter either way. The will to fail blocks objective consideration.

Proverbs 12:11 says: "He that tilleth his land shall be satisfied with bread: but he that followeth vain persons is void of understanding."

Our quote for today is from Thomas Edison. He said: "Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time."

Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are beginning a new series titled, “Overcome Fear of Success”. Edwin Bliss writes:

It sounds a bit far-fetched that people would dread success, but millions do. They have a secret determination to fail, and they are invariably successful -- that is, successful in their effort to fail. 

-- But the idea is ridiculous. If you didn't want to reach your goal why would you establish it? Why would anyone attempt to do anything and sabotage his own effort by trying to fail?

Because human beings don't always behave rationally, that's why. Contradictory as the term sounds, the fear of success is a common component of the human psyche and a frequent cause of procrastination. 

The reason this phenomenon is hard to accept is that it's not only irrational, it's hidden, even from the person involved. It's a function of the subconscious. For a variety of reasons, our subconscious mind may rebel at the commands we give it, preventing us from getting around to things we had intended to do.

Thus, when you analyze the real reason behind your procrastination, as we recommended earlier, you may wind up putting your problem into a pigeonhole marked Fear of Success. In other words, it isn't the actual doing of the task which you dread -- it's the result of getting it done.

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2 Timothy 2:3-6 says: "Therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier. And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully. The husbandman that laboureth must be first partaker of the fruits."

Our quote for today is from Vincent van Gogh. He said: "What would life be if we had no courage to attempt anything?"

Today, in the Get Things Done podcast we are continuing with Part 7 of our series titled, “Overcoming Fear of Failure”. 

In our last episode, we talked about how exaggerating our fears -- imagining that the worst possible things that can happen do happen -- can help us overcome the fear of failure. Today, we are going to summarize all that we have learned in this series.

Edwin Bliss writes:

Suppose you'd like to learn Spanish. It would be useful to you in your work but not essential, so you've been putting off registering for the class. You analyze the reasons and realize your procrastination stems from fear of failure, fear of competing with younger students who might have more supple minds and perhaps even Spanish-speaking backgrounds.

First, imagine yourself successfully learning the language; picture yourself meeting friendly and interesting people, in the class and beyond, conversing with them in Spanish; envision yourself enhancing your status within the organization you work for because of your new-found skill. See yourself traveling in Spanish-speaking countries with new freedom and a new appreciation of the culture.

Now envision the worst. The worst that could happen would be to flunk out of the course. Mentally paint a terrible picture of the instructor ridiculing you, all the other students far outperforming you. So what? You could simply resign and nobody would really care. You wouldn't have lost much except some time. The experience would be distasteful, but you realize that you certainly could handle it.

Now ask yourself what is most likely to happen. You probably won't star, but you aren't likely to be ridiculed either. Chances are you'll do at least as well as the average and your shortcomings will hardly be noticed. And although you may have some difficulties gaining proficiency, you realize that you definitely would gain something worthwhile by the experience. Your fear now begins to dissipate and you are more likely to be able to take the plunge.

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