Are you prone to procrastination?

If this is a common pattern for you, you’ve probably wondered why you keep doing this, despite the obvious negative impacts on your business and your sanity.

Perhaps you’ve been meaning to launch a new offer, put your prices up or start promoting yourself more consistently, but somehow you keep finding reasons to put it off.

Many people procrastinate because they’re secretly afraid that what they produce won’t be good enough. However, have you considered that you may be procrastinating because you’re secretly worried about succeeding?

Because success can bring its own challenges. More clients, more responsibility, greater visibility and perhaps even a different way of thinking about yourself and your business.

So why might you be frightened to succeed?

Pride goes before a fall

Many people have been brought up to believe that success is dangerous because the higher you fly, the further you have to fall. If you never get your hopes up in the first place, you can’t be disappointed.

Perhaps you’ve got a great idea for a new course or programme, but you keep finding reasons not to launch it. Because what if it really takes off? What if you start earning more money, get excited about the possibilities, and then it all comes crashing down?

There is, of course, some truth in the idea that we can be disappointed when things don’t turn out as we’d hoped.

But would you really rather live a life where every possibility of excitement and joy was flattened?

Ups and downs are part of life.

Successful people aren’t nice people

Sometimes we’ve been conditioned to believe that managers, business owners or people with money are intrinsically not nice people.

We can probably all think of examples which ‘prove’ this rule, but clearly it isn’t logical.

If you have a deeply held belief that people who make a lot of money are greedy, for example, you might find yourself resisting the idea of charging higher prices, even when you know your work is worth more.

Because what would that say about you?

But being successful doesn’t mean you have to become arrogant, selfish or unpleasant.

And, if nothing else, you can be an exception.

I don’t want to be in the spotlight

Being in the spotlight or the centre of attention can feel very unsafe, especially if you’ve experienced negative attention in the past.

And running your own business often involves making yourself more visible.

Perhaps you know that speaking at conferences, appearing on podcasts or sharing your expertise on LinkedIn could help you attract more clients. But the thought of more people noticing you, having opinions about you or possibly criticising you makes you feel very uncomfortable.

The truth is that some people will try to cut down ‘tall poppies’.

This kind of person is likely to be a tiny minority, however, and are you really going to hold yourself back because of them?

After all, most people are far too busy worrying about their own lives and businesses to spend much time thinking about yours!

I don’t deserve success

This may be a self-esteem issue, or a case of imposter syndrome.

Either way, it’s likely that you’re creating a story about the kind of person who does deserve success: that they’re somehow better than you.

Perhaps you look at other freelance language professionals who are fully booked, running successful programmes or charging much more than you, and assume that they must have something you haven’t got.

The truth is that they may simply have been luckier. Or perhaps they’ve developed particular skills, made different decisions or worked out a business model that suits them.

If so, find out the secret of their success and see what you can apply to your own business.

But don’t assume that they’re somehow more deserving than you are.

I don’t want to hurt anyone

Maybe you’re worried that people might feel bad about your success?

Perhaps you’re concerned that earning more money than your friends or colleagues will make them uncomfortable. Or that other teachers will resent you if your business takes off while they’re still struggling.

You are almost certainly projecting how you might feel onto them.

Yes, your success might trigger some people, but it could also inspire others.

And if you’re successful, you’re going to be in a position where you’re better equipped to help others, whether through mentoring, sharing opportunities or financially.

Someone else’s success doesn’t have to come at your expense, and your success doesn’t have to come at theirs.

So, is fear of success holding you back?

Of course, procrastination can have all sorts of causes. Sometimes we’re simply overwhelmed, exhausted or unclear about what we need to do next.

But if you regularly find yourself putting off things that you genuinely want to achieve, it might be

worth asking yourself what you’re actually afraid of.

What would happen if this worked?

What might change if your business became more successful, you earned more money or you became better known for what you do?

And what are you telling yourself about those changes?

Once you start recognising the stories you’re telling yourself, you can begin to question whether they’re really true.

Because there’s nothing wrong with wanting to be successful. And there’s certainly nothing wrong with building a business that allows you to do work you love, earn a good living and have the kind of life you want.

You don’t have to hold yourself back just because part of you is worried about what might happen if you succeed.

Want to feel more confident running your business?

If fear of failure, fear of success or unhelpful beliefs are getting in the way of building the business you want, I’ve brought together some practical resources to help.

In my Feel more confident running my business Resource Centre, you’ll find articles and videos about overcoming self-doubt, recognising your expertise, dealing with your Inner Troll and making business decisions with greater confidence.

Explore the Mindset and Confidence resources