Success or Failure

I think that some people get stumped when facing the possibility of failure. It paralyzes them and prevents them from moving forward and accomplishing their goals and dreams. This is definitely an obstacle that needs to be hurdled. Sometimes just recognizing that that is what you are doing is enough to change the behavior and other times you need to dig down deep and find the courage to overcome your fears. I also think that some people get just as paralyzed by the fear of success. This may sound kinda weird but think about it, success has a lot of responsibilities. There are more expectations placed on you by yourself and others. The drive to keep succeeding is also there, if you can do this then you can do more.

I think that both of these obstacles are part of the inner demon that everyone has to face. You know, that little voice in your head that you need to pacify before you can move on? We all have it. I use self talk to deal with mine. Not just a morning chat in the mirror, some days constant, encouraging dialogs in order to get the job done. I also wonder how much these fears work on our subconscious and how much that can change or effect our behavior. Let me explain. If the fear of success is deep rooted and you are doing everything that you can to overcome the fear, is there a possibility that you can sabotage your success subconsciously? And does that mean that you have to dig deeper to figure out the root of the problem?

I don't know the answer to these questions but putting them out there gives me more food for thought. I suspect that sometimes I am afraid of success, and if I accomplish something then I won't measure up. So is this just a fancy way of saying that I am, in the long run, afraid of failure? Whenever a set a goal for myself, it does not become real until I tell people what it is. Once I have done that, I begin to doubt, not my ability to accomplish the goal, but my ability to be a successful person. I have an example that takes a bit of explaining but I will try. I am a Child and Youth Care Counsellor and I belong to an association that certifies worker indicating that they are qualified to do the job. In order to get certified you must write a lengthy exam (three hours) and then if you pass, you have an oral exam (which is much of the same type of questions but just nerve racking as it is in front of a panel of your peers). The material covered is vast as it involves theories on child development, signs and symptoms of different types of abuse, family therapy, and treatment of all of these things. It takes time to prepare for this exam and while I was preparing I was quite confident that I was taking all the necessary steps in order to successfully pass the exam but something was niggling in the back of my mind the whole time, 'What if I pass?' I was not worried at all that I might fail but I was petrified beyond belief that I might pass. I did not give the notion much time or thought and it did not grow past the niggling feeling but it was real. I think that if I would have given the notion more air time, it could have been a bigger obstacle. Well, I did pass and I lived and now I teach others how to pass the exam and overcome their fears. Each time I set a goal, long or short term, there is that niggling feeling, 'What if I succeed?'