Why Is Fear Holding You Back?

Fear doesn’t arise or exist only in professionals who are just starting out. It is also present in great leaders. And today, I want to talk about the two types of fear that can make you stop, regardless of your role or position.

There is expected fear and unexpected fear. To help you understand this better: when you were a child and didn’t listen to your parents when the moment required silence, they might have said something like, “If you don’t stop, I’m going to pinch you.” That is expected fear. Your brain has already captured that information and prepared your body to receive it, creating the illusion that it will hurt less.

Unexpected fear, on the other hand, causes our brain to create a defense mechanism that immediately pulls us away, creating distance. Fear, whether conscious or unconscious, can interfere with action and, consequently, with leaders’ productivity. But how does this happen? Fear can paralyze you. And in such a competitive market, with the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence, developing skills and being prepared for a scenario that changes every second is essential not only to feel fear, but mainly to know how to deal with it.

What are you afraid of? Many professionals freeze when faced with the new, with growth, with evolution: fear of making mistakes, fear of losing control, and insecurity in the face of new challenges. Even if they don’t talk about it, every human being feels fear, regardless of culture or position. Because fear is a preparation for attention, risk assessment, and decision-making.

However, feeling fear can also be a positive thing. According to psychiatrist Srini Pillay, “Fear can interrupt thinking when you feel it or when it is triggered. Unconscious fear also affects the amygdala. When anxiety levels are high, the thinking brain does not function properly.” The amygdala “fires” at any sign of threat. To reverse this process, it is necessary to activate a sufficiently strong positive emotion.

We have gone through many changes in recent years, and professionals need to reinvent themselves. According to a Harvard Business Review article from June 2024, a PwC study revealed that nearly 40% of workers fear their jobs will become obsolete within five years. For younger workers, Black workers, and lower-wage professionals, this fear is even more intense. According to another study, one quarter of them fear that artificial intelligence will make their jobs obsolete. FOBO fear of becoming obsolete has been increasing among workers in the United States.

So, what can you do with this feeling? Don’t question whether you are good enough or whether you truly have what it takes. Developing your skills makes a significant difference in feeling more secure and confident. Something I constantly teach professionals is this: write down the perception you have of yourself today. Then, ask someone who doesn’t know you very well what they perceive when they look at you. Feeding this fear will only make you see yourself as smaller.

Here are three ways to keep fear from paralyzing you and help you achieve your goals:

1 – Gain clarity!
Clarity takes away fear’s power because when you don’t name fear, it turns into anxiety. Try to understand why a specific situation is triggering this fear. Ask yourself: what am I exactly afraid of? Making mistakes? Being judged? Losing control?

2 – What are your skills?
When you reorient your brain and understand what you are good at, you begin to realize that this skill is unlikely to be replaced by a machine. After all, many people can learn the technical skills to operate a robot but what skills do you have that cannot be replaced by one? This brings comfort and greater confidence.

3 – Your mindset!
“What if it goes wrong?” Have you ever thought about that? I have. And that shows that you’re not yet confident in what you’re doing but that’s another conversation for another time. Let’s replace that question with: “What will I learn even if it goes wrong?”

When you see learning, the brain understands that it’s not a threat it’s training. Confident people are not people without fear; they are people who know what to do with it.

Yes, we all feel fear. The difference is that, for some, it is simply that butterflies-in-the-stomach feeling needed to evolve, reach goals, and maximize results. Instead of seeing fear as a threat, see it as an opportunity to step out of your comfort zone and grow.