Train Your Brain to Overcome Fear

Entrepreneurs have to take big risks in order to succeed, but even well-known leaders are often terrified to leap. In one famous example, fear of failure almost kept Kevin Rose from starting Digg, the enormously successful social news site that made him a multi-millionaire.Over time, he learned to trust his gut by taking the initiative to learn sides of the business that were unfamiliar or scary at first.

You don't have to be a natural risk-taker in order to succeed, and learning how fear works can empower you to overcome it.

When you become fearful and hesitant, your brain is focusing on loss aversion, meaning that it’s trying to protect you from harm. It's an adaptive strategy that kept our ancestors from getting killed.

In that mode, your brain becomes hyper-analytical. It catalogues everything that could go wrong and recalls past memories of failure in an effort to keep you safe. "The unintended consequence is that you get demotivated and don't take any action," says Monica Mehta, author of The Entrepreneurial Instinct (McGraw-Hill, 2012).

Your brain is wired to avoid anything that could harm you, so your aversion to loss is powerful. "Loss aversion is two and a half times more powerful than greed," Mehta says. With a ratio like that, it's no wonder that fear holds so many people back.

But your brain also has a system, known as the reward pathway, that releases feel-good chemicals when you do something novel or thrilling. This system overrides loss aversion and rewards you for taking risks.

"People with naturally active reward pathways focus on novelty or action," Mehta says. To overcome fear, adopt some of their strategies for focusing on the positive side of risk.

Here are three tips to help you do that:

1. Don't weigh the pros and cons. When you're taking a risk, a bit of research and a gut reaction is all you really need to make a good decision. Wading in a swamp of pros and cons will only activate fear. "The more you go into an analytical mode, the more you activate the part of the brain that makes you fearful and demotivated," Mehta says.

If your gut tells you to say yes, then prevent fear from taking over by simply diving in and adapting as you go. That doesn't mean you should be reckless, but the sooner you start to take action, the less likely you are to get scared.

2. Set many small goals. To get comfortable with risk, start small by setting a series of manageable goals that you can accomplish in a short period of time. Include some that are a little scary, but the main purpose here is to experience success repeatedly.

Those early successes will motivate you to seek out bigger risks. "Every time we achieve success, our brains release dopamine, which motivates us to go back and tackle the next success," Mehta says. If you approach a big risk at that point, you'll be primed to take action and less likely to get bogged down in fear of potential losses.

3. Surround yourself with risk-takers. A big part of comfort with risk is exposure. If you have people in your social circle, or especially in your family, who have been willing to take risks, then you will be much more likely to do the same. "There's a huge social aspect to entrepreneurship," Mehta says.

Risk-takers will be more likely to encourage you to take chances, and they will also be living examples of what it takes to risk and fail and risk again. "If you look at the biography of a famous person, it all depends on where in the biography you stop," Mehta says. "Success comes by way of many, many failures."

From Entrepreneur

5 Stern Truths You Need to Know Before Becoming an Entrepreneur

Expressing your desire for entrepreneurship 15 years ago would have created laughter and an assumption that you’re crazy. The tables have turned. Entrepreneurship has become one of the most respected and intelligent paths to take. It’s saved our economy and moves our culture forward.

Dream “jobs” are disappearing fast. Creating your ideal opportunity is the new normal. A lot of people are getting into entrepreneurship but with a blurred perspective. They think all they need is passion and work ethic. Those people are in for a rough ride, unless they understand these five powerful truths.

You can either play it safe or become successful, but you can’t do both.

1. Failure is the only thing guaranteed. Michael Jordan, the epitome of success, has said “I have failed over and over again, but that’s why I succeed.” How you respond to failure determines your success. Successful entrepreneurs are paid for their high tolerance for stress and pain.

Successful people see failure different than the majority. Stay loyal to yourself through failure. Instead of taking failure personally, use it to sharpen your perspective and strengthen your commitment. Most new entrepreneurs beat themselves up but, to gain the competitive advantage, you must leverage failure for even greater success.

Failure adds to your hunger and real hunger comes from tough times. Good luck finding hunger in the kids who have had everything given to them.

2. Habits trump inspiration. Inspiration is needed to create consistent action but your habits are ultimately going to define your success or failure.

It’s been said after seminars and conferences only 5 percent actually use what they’ve learned. Why? It’s because inspiration is short term, feels good in the moment, but doesn’t last past the activity producing it.

The biggest inspiration of all is seeing progress and results, which comes from new habits. When you begin the formation of a new habit, stick to it and see the lasting change in your new-found life. Great entrepreneurs focus on behavior and habits more than thought. Thinking is important, but doing is crucial.

3. Resourcefulness is the ultimate resource. The majority of people will say they don’t have the resources. This resource belief structure keeps most people from building the world-class businesses they are capable of.

The great entrepreneurs find a way to maximize whatever resources they have, as little as that may be.They don’t believe in limited resources because they understand the ultimate resources are the feelings and emotions that make them resourceful. Tony Robbins, the well known life coach and motivational speaker, says is perfectly. “Resourcefulness is the ultimate resource.”

If you don’t have the money, but you are creative enough can you find the money? YES!  With enough determination and commitment can you make it work with little resources. The ultimate key is internal emotions.  

4. Your circle of influence will make or break you. Leaving your mind open to the negative influence of other people is the most common weakness of new entrepreneurs. Poor choices of influence heads the top of the list of reasons most entrepreneurs quit prematurely.

To grow, learn and become the person who achieves big success requires an exceptional supporting network. Successful entrepreneurs surround themselves with a powerful circle of influence who guide, challenge and help them think bigger.

Success rises and falls on who you associate with. Stay aware of your surroundings. You can systematize a lot of things but time isn’t one of them, so make sure you’re spending it with the right people.

5. It’s not easy but it’s worth it. The bigger the goals, the bigger the challenges. The bigger the rewards, the tougher the journey. 

If becoming an entrepreneur was easy, everybody would be doing it and it  wouldn’t be worth much. The moment you pursue entrepreneurship, obstacles will show up. They test your character and faith but let you see if you’re really serious about becoming an entrepreneur.

You must focus on  the rewards on the other side of struggle. Visualize how good it will feel being your own boss, controlling your schedule, inspiring others and creating financial freedom. Chaos is guaranteed when you strive for entrepreneurial greatness. It’s important you accept that instead of fighting  it. You’ll never know how strong you are until being strong is the only option you have.

Still want to be an entrepreneur? Good, I promise it’s worth it.

From Entrepreneur

6 Small Changes to Your Morning Routine Will Transform Your Entire Day

People have a lot of bad habits when it comes to morning routines. Here's how to fix them.

The first few minutes of your morning are the most important of your day and can set the tone for positivity and productivity. Ideally, you have an app or clock that taps into your natural circadian rhythm and wakes you during your "best time" within a certain window. Getting jarred out of a deep REM slumber to the sound of a blaring alarm clock sets you up for a negative day brimming with fatigue and crankiness.

But getting the right alarm clock is only part of the battle.

Here are six ways to start your morning better while kicking bad habits that destroy good sleep hygiene.

1. Give yourself at least 15 minutes of no screen time

Besides turning off an alarm that might be on your phone, resist the urge to check your email or social media. It sets you up for a day of being enslaved to technology, and your morning time should be reserved just for you. This might mean disabling notifications on your home screen so you're not tempted by that Facebook update or mounting emails.

2. Swap out the coffee for lemon water

Lukewarm water with a fresh lemon squeezed into it has numerous benefits--but you need to drink it first thing in the morning. It starts your metabolism, which burns fat while sustaining muscle, cleanses your mouth and throat, and gives you a boost of energy. Then wait at least 30 minutes before brushing your teeth, drinking, or eating. This might be a toughie for caffeine addicts, but you can manage 30 minutes and it's a great way to reduce the need for a coffee fix.

3. Sit up correctly

There are many "bad ways" to get out of bed, but only one best way, if your body allows for it: Roll over onto your right side, then push yourself up into a sitting position before standing with a straight back (no hunching). It's the gentlest way to get up, takes the pressure off your heart and back, and is a great, easy ritual to start your morning right.

4. Set and affirm your goals for the day

While stretching in bed or prepping your lemon water, set some feasible goals for the day, but limit them to three. This might include packing your lunch instead of eating out to save money, committing to that noon yoga class, or scheduling the doctor's appointment you've been putting off.

5. Stretch

It seems so obvious, and yet so many people ignore it. You can do this in bed, using a simple stretched-out-legs-and-arms-overhead movement. You can indulge in a supine twist on a padded floor, or you can practice whatever feels right for as little or as long as you like. Your body's just been booted down for hours--you can't expect it to be warmed up, energized, and raring to go right away.

6. Meditate

Don't skip over this one just because it sounds boring or like you don't have time for it. Meditation is only as strict, long, short, boring, or annoying as you make it. A "successful" meditation in an entire lifetime might be only a few seconds. However, sitting in a comfortable position and focusing on clearing your mind--even if it's for less than a minute--can help your mental clarity and spiritual well-being and set the stage for the day.

You probably already know which morning habits aren't serving you, so why keep doing them? Instead, focus on what really makes your mornings better and prioritize them.

From Inc. Magazine

Dominate Your Industry: How to Become the Best in Your Field

The notion of a miraculous genius being born smarter and more capable than the rest of us mere mortals charms our curiosity. Robert Greene, author of the popular The 48 Laws of Power (Penguin, 2000), would disagree. The fascination we have in prodigies, he says, is "bogus. It's completely bogus." Exceptional talent is about hard work, he says.

Greene studied the lives of exceptionally successful people for his latest book, Mastery (Viking/Penguin, 2012). He says that there is no such thing as being born into superior success. Rather, those politicians, entrepreneurs, scientists, athletes and artists who rise above the rest in their field, achieving what he calls a "high-level intuitive feel" for their specialty, have an unyielding focus and work ethic.

"It's not a question of some natural talent or brilliance that you have, it's that you have reached that level of experience or practice," Greene told Entrepreneur.com. "We have to get rid of that old-fashioned notion of genius and creativity." He holds himself to the standard he preaches, having put in more 20,000 hours researching and writing his last five books.

Robert Greene

Image credit: Susan Anderson

In Mastery, Greene examines the cultural poster-children for natural-born genius: Mozart and Einstein. For example, by the time he was 9 years old, Mozart had already put in 10,000 to 20,000 hours of work, equaling the efforts of an average person in his or her 20s, says Greene. Einstein attributed his own success to persistence, he says.

Greene developed a near cult-following for his methodical and -- some say -- Machiavellian breakdown of power and the people who wield it inThe 48 Laws of Power. Part of what makes Greene popular is that he studies powerful people and then breaks down their process such that others can emulate it. Here are recommendations from Greene for entrepreneurs eager to be the next Steve Jobs.

1. Chose a topic to focus on that you are deeply in love with.

"Masters and highly successful people are emotionally and personally engaged in their work" on a level beyond intellectual curiosity, Greene says. It's the personal commitment to a topic, problem or skill that is ultimately necessary for motivating and maintaining the long hours and fervent curiosity required to rise to the level of "mastery" in a field. "Otherwise you are never going to have the energy, the patience, the persistence, the ability to put up with the criticism, you will give up too easily, you won't push through all the crap the world is going to throw at you."

2. Skip all the extra school. Learn by doing.

According to Greene, learning entrepreneurship in school is inane. "Being an entrepreneur is making something, it's like Legos," Greene says and the best way to become an entrepreneur is to try building businesses.

Henry Ford's first two automobile companies failed miserably, notes Greene. "You want to actually psychologically desire failure because it is how you are going to learn." If you aren't going to start your own business, at least work in as small a company as possible to learn as many skills as possible. Avoid large corporations and business school, Greene says. As an entrepreneur, "you are going to hire the people that have the MBAs. They are going to bring in that nuts-and-bolts knowledge."

3. Don't focus on making money in your 20s.

"Tune out the idea of making your first million. It's about learning. You are there to accumulate as much experience building a business and you want to build several, if possible," says Greene. In the first five to 10 years after college, pursue experience over money. You will learn more than you could earn in those years.

4. When you have some experience, select a mentor. 

When selecting a mentor, look for somebody who is already doing what you see yourself doing in five to 10 years, says Greene. If you are going to try to approach a master to be your mentor, wait to do so until you have already started amassing a body of work.

A healthy mentorship relationship is like that between a parent and a child, says Greene. A good mentor should be older than you and at a point in his or her career that he or she is wants to give back. Personality is important, too. "You want somebody who matches your spirit. If you are a very rebellious type, you don't want a stuffy conservative type mentor," says Greene.

5. Be flexible and creative.

For the book, Greene interviewed Paul Graham, the computer programmer entrepreneur who started Viaweb, a company acquired by Yahoo in 1998 to become the Yahoo Store, and a partner of Y Combinator, an accelerator for startup entrepreneurs. In the highly competitive interview process for Y Combinator, Graham "can tell after one minute if he has the next Zuckerberg or this guy is useless, and it is because they are open-minded, they're flexible and they love, they are excited, they have a childlike interest," says Greene. Building a company will inevitably confront you with unexpected challenges, and your ability to adjust your path to deal with those surprises is critical.

From Entrepreneur

5 Lessons Entrepreneurs Can Learn From Running

I love running my company, but of course, the risky business of entrepreneurship comes with its stressors. To clear my head and keep my body and mind in shape, I maintain a strict running regimen and make sure to hit the pavement almost every day. This is where I do some of my best thinking, and during a recent run, I realized how closely the sport aligns with my business mentality.

While training for a marathon or a road race isn’t for everyone, but here are five lessons entrepreneurs can learn from the discipline:

1. Always run, but save enough energy to push.

Building your own company is definitely not a sprint. It’s a marathon (and maybe even longer than that). A successful entrepreneur needs to constantly perform over a long period of time, and he can’t afford to lose his pace. Professional runners know that if, for whatever reason, they aren’t able to stick to their pace in the first half of the race, it’s twice as hard to achieve their goal. They have to overachieve in the second half when they’re already out of energy from the first.

I remind myself every day to always run--never walk--and to hit my goals every single day. Otherwise, I know the next day will be twice as hard. That said, I always keep enough energy on reserve to be able to push extra hard for special occasions, such as closing an important customer deal or raising an additional round of funding. I know I need to be fit enough to power through to the home stretch, and I can’t do that if I try to sprint every mile in between. In short, go fast, but never forget you are in this for the long haul.

2. Train with others.

Running is an individual sport for which many train alone. Without fellow runners by my side, it can sometimes be difficult to stay motivated, run that extra mile or worse--get up on a weekend morning to train. Trust me, it’s not always fun. I’m often up early in the morning doing high-intensity training by myself. During those sessions, I know it would be easier if I had someone with me to help stay motivated.

The same holds true for building a business. Collaborating with a group of likeminded people pushes me to the next level -- especially if they’re “fitter” and more “athletic” than I am when it comes to business.

Get a peer group and meet other founders or CEOs. Talk about your struggles, share your war stories and get their feedback. Learn from them and always be brutally honest about your own experiences. Help them whenever you can and don’t be afraid to ask for help. They will be there for you, because they understand what you are going through.

3. Follow your own game plan.

Everyone knows that you should stick to your plan, but I’ve seen many of my friends make this mistake--and I’ve made it too. You make a grand plan to run a race, and then you train, prepare and define your target pace. Once the race starts, you seem to forget everything and start off way too fast. After your first mile, you realize what you’re doing, force yourself to slow down and you’re able to get back on track. But then, out of the corner of your eye, you notice someone else passing by you, and you try to match her pace. And then again, you start to crash and you end up suffering throughout the rest of the race.

It’s important to have a game plan and to stick to it. Don’t get nervous because your competitors are doing X, Y and Z. Never let them dictate your strategy. It’s okay to be slower in the beginning if you know how to outperform everyone else in the long run. Don’t blindly copy someone else in the market. Understand their reasoning, their customers and be flexible enough to adapt your own strategy, if necessary. Before changing anything, think long and hard about the decision and try to remember the reason you created your game plan in the first place.

4. Embrace the pain.

You may love running, but that doesn’t mean you’re going to enjoy it every single day. Of course it is satisfying to go out on a perfect day after sleeping eight hours and it’s not as much fun when it’s cold, dark and rainy. Get over it and stick to your plan. You won’t achieve something great otherwise. Find those small things that still make it fun. Embrace the stress and stay positive.

I love running my company, but there hasn’t been a single week in the last few years when I haven’t thought, “Oh, boy. It’s always something!” Nevertheless, I have made it a point to enjoy at least some of every single day.

5. Always win.

It’s race day, you tossed and turned all night and it’s pouring rain. It doesn’t matter. Nobody cares if you are having a bad day, and you shouldn’t either. Stop giving yourself excuses as to why you can’t win or why you can’t run your pace. Go out there and achieve your new personal record or run a complete marathon for the first time. The biggest mistake you can make during a race is to start thinking about why you should go slower or why you should give up.

Building a successful company is extraordinarily difficult. Most entrepreneurs fail--even those backed by a huge amount of venture funding. Those are the statistics. We all know them, but they don’t matter once you’ve started your own company. As soon as you do it, you are all in. Focus on winning, focus on building your dream and never, ever stop until you’ve crossed the finish line.

From Entrepreneur

Embrace Your Ideas, Even If They May Sound Ridiculous

I’m the inventor of ESPN. At least, that’s how I tell it when I regale the story of a college assignment in 1967. I was in Professor Ripley’s radio and television programming course at the University of Wisconsin when the door to an idea was opened.

Each of us was to select two broadcast markets, detect an under-served community need and fill the gap. For my assignment, I chose to research and recommend an all-sports independent television station.

Now the reality today is that I am not the billionaire creator of ESPN, but I had an idea I loved that was ahead of its time and clearly think about it more than 40 years later.

Undoubtedly, you have had an idea at some point that has struck you so fully that it lives with you day in and day out. It follows you to breakfast, creeps up in conversations and dances in your mind before you fall asleep. But you haven’t acted on it.

In a short list of reasons why you aren’t taking your idea to the next step, the most likely that can occur are “I’m too young,” “I’m too old,” “I don’t have the money,” “I don’t have the time” and “It’s too out there.”

The reasons feel valid, and to an extent they are. I could check most of those off the list of reasons I left my idea for an all-sports station in the classroom.

Whether you’ve left an idea behind or you’re currently letting it stew, there are a few things I have found that need constant reminding to ensure your ideas move forward.

1. Everything starts as an idea.

Some ideas are better than others. But to determine good from bad it takes time and patience and many times a test or two out in the marketplace. But for sure, even the best idea is criticized by those who didn’t think it up.

For instance, Professor Ripley was clear in his early skepticism surrounding elements of "all-sports television," making me more determined than ever to squeeze an A from the course.

2. Ideas develop from the heart.

To find what you truly love, let your instincts be your guide. Seize that crazy idea, the one that wakes you up in the middle of the night or comes to you while washing the car. Those are the ideas more likely to succeed.

In crafting my first novel, Bodies on the Potomac, I was constantly drawn to the keyboard. I’d be lost for hours with no awareness of time. When you love an idea, you can’t stay away from it. Let it move beyond the “idea stage” and witness how quickly an idea can form into a tangible endeavor.

3. Ideas are yours alone.

It’s easy for others to laugh at an idea and to ridicule its inventor. I knew the risk I ran with my own personal ESPN. But the professor came around, his skepticism eased and I ended up with the A.

It takes some nerve to go out there with an idea. It takes even more to plunge into a project when you have no idea about the outcome. Take the critique, the sideways glances and the mocking tone and push pass it. The idea belongs to you and approval by others is not required.

4. Ideas you ignore will haunt you.

I ignored the pursuit of an all-sports television station or network back in 1967. I wasn’t bright enough to know that somewhere out there in this economic wonderland called America there were investors who would have backed me. So while today I may not own a sports network, I can say with pride that because of another great idea I’m a published author.

If you’ve let an idea pass you by, don’t bury the next one in a closet of would-be dreams. Take your idea out there. It doesn’t guarantee you’ll be a seven-figure success, but you never know. At a minimum it could lead you to a career you love or maybe a healthy hobby.

Ideas by themselves offer very little beyond the rush of excitement you get when you think about it. Seize an idea when you have it or risk losing something amazing.

From Entrepreneur

How a First-Time Entrepreneur Went Global With One Simple Idea

Through a combination of venturing and licensing, Nancy Tedeschi got her product, the SnapIt Screw, into big box stores everywhere.

When Nancy Tedeschi was struck by the idea to reinvent the screw by adding a long snap-off piece--thereby enabling glasses-wearers the world over to quickly fix their eyewear--she was absolutely sure she wanted to bring the product to market herself.

"I thought, this can't be that difficult. And if I do it myself, I won't have to share the profits," Tedeschi said. Her innovation, the SnapIt Screw, has been remarkably successful by any measure. After investing $250,000 of her own money to get the business off the ground, her repair kits are now sold by Walmart, Office Depot, and Ace Hardware, as well as many online retailers. But these days, Tedeschi is a little less excited about going it alone. "You couldn't pay me to do what I did!" she exclaimed during our interview. Why? "Because it was excruciatingly painful. I was a rookie; I knew nothing. And I had to know everything about everything, make all of the right decisions at the right time, and that resulted in a lot of pressure and stress."

Three and half years after she began the process of bringing the SnapIt Screw to life, Tedeschi decided to license the idea to her distributor. And she's been breathing a lot easier ever since. A royalty rate that didn't sound very high when she started out makes a lot more sense to her now, she explained. Yes, the licensor is making most of the profits. It's also doing all the work.

Tedeschi's story illustrates some of the differences between licensing and venturing. Before you begin investing in a business, stop and ask yourself: Is this idea more suited for licensing or venturing? Neither approach is better than the other, although I would argue that licensing is a faster, easier, and cheaper route to market for most ideas developed by entrepreneurs and independent inventors.

If you choose to venture an idea and start a business, you assume all of the responsibilities and risks. For people who love to wear multiple hats and thrive on being in control, this route makes sense. Some ideas are also too complicated, too new, or too expensive for a licensor to want to take on, leaving an entrepreneur no choice but to go it alone. When I came up with the idea to change the shape of the guitar pick, I knew I couldn't license it. For one, there was no way to prevent someone from ripping me off. So I started a business with my friend Rob. I learned a lot and then I got out, because ultimately, I wasn't enjoying the day-to-day tasks of running a small business--like managing cash flow and doing inventory control. I wanted to be innovating.

Licensing a product requires significantly less time and money than venturing. To be successful at licensing, an entrepreneur must be creative and resourceful, understand manufacturing, and function as a salesman. If you focus on licensing your ideas, you will have the freedom to live and work anywhere. However, Tedeschi was right: The potential payoff is also much smaller. She's quick to acknowledge that her product ended up fetching a much higher-than-normal royalty rate because she had already done the legwork. Eight months ago, she began selling the SnapIt Screw in European markets, and plans to eventually license the idea there as well. In the end, doing both has worked out pretty wonderfully for her.

Which path is your skill set geared toward? Which path is more likely to guarantee your idea's success?

From Inc. Magazine