Have you taken notice that whenever you are about to embark on a business venture, that old demon, Fear of Failure pays you a visit and nearly paralyzes you. You get those annoying butterflies in your stomach and sleepless nights have you imagining all sorts of painful events. You picture yourself the object of scorn, or even worse the object of pity. So you put off trying for the umteenth time, and abandon your dreams.

You are sure that the successful individuals, the superstars of this world, that you look upon with awe must possess some magic blueprint to success that is hidden from the majority of us. And you conclude they must be empowered with courage and ingenuity that you cannot match. No so. The success magnates of this world would be the first to tell you that they are no different, that they, too, have been visited by the Demon, Fear of Failure, and have had their share of unsuccessful ventures.

You see, Fear of Failure is embodied in all of us. Each of us is apprehensive of an unknown outcome. By nature we like to know what to expect, and we like our expectations to be comfortable. We seek approval and gratification and prefer to avoid painful experiences that bring rejection and self-incrimination.

How then do we slay the demon, Fear of Failure, and realize our dreams? There are a few basic steps that will make the battle easier and enable victory. Does this mean you will not have failures? Definitely not. You will have failures, for without failure you cannot succeed. It simply means that you will adjust your viewpoint which will dispel an unhealthy Fear of Failure.

Foremost, you must appreciate that failure is an important step in achieving your success. View your failures as a stairway to your dreams. In climbing a literal staircase you might be able to skip a step or two, however, you would not be able to climb to the top of the stairway in just one leap. Likewise, you cannot reach your goals with one huge jump to success, but must first climb the stairs through a series of small failures. Remember, all great success stories grew from small failures. There is no magic blueprint.

Consider, too, that the Fear of Failure is generally much more excruciating than the failure itself. Your imagination, no doubt, will produce all kinds of painful events. Dont let it. Ask yourself, what is the worst that can happen?, and then imagine yourself dealing successfully the failure. We human beings are built to be resilient and can withstand a great deal if we know whats coming. So imagine the worst and how you would react successfully. The emphasis here is on imagining overcoming the failure, perceive yourself finding the way to go on. Do not spend too much time on imagining the worst. Remember what you dwell on is what you will attract to yourself. By perceiving yourself in a feared situation and finding a solution you will alleviate the anxiety of the uncertain outcome.

Fear of Failure will be minimized if you avoid putting unrealistic expectations on yourself. Success and failure is not equal to bad and good. Failure does not identify you as a loser. In simple terms, failure just means you made a mistake, miscalculated and mistakes can be corrected. View the failure as a mistake, learn from it and move on. Just dont give up. Great successes have often followed the most grueling failures. ofttimes , would be success, was never experienced merely because the person quit at the threshold of fulfilling of his dreams. How said is that?

Remember if the old demon, Fear of Failure, is overtaking you:

1. Express your fears, tell it to a friend, or write it down where you can read it; whatever it takes to put it in perspective.

2. Ask yourself, what is the worst that can happen?, then imagine yourself overcoming the situation.

3. View your failures as steps to success. Each time you climb a step you will gain confidence.

4. Do not give up. Success often arrives when it looks the bleakest.

5. Keep a success journal. Write down every accomplishment, no matter how small. Record how it made you feel and what you learned from it. Review it when you feel fearful, in this way you will conquer that old demon: Fear of Failure. Who knows, one day you may be able to write a Sucess Story ebook and make millions.