Dismantling the Shadows of Self-Doubt: An Entrepreneur's Guide

Whenever you try to avoid a challenge, did it go away? It actually doesn't go away. It grows just like our laundry. The more we avoid it, the bigger the pile gets. Running from something makes it larger in our minds. Welcome back to another episode on Super Entrepreneur's Podcast. I'm your host, Shahid Durrani. I know you have been on this journey and experienced that voice within persistently making noise about your capabilities saying, is this really for me? Can I truly achieve this goal? It's like a shadow that keeps growing with each challenge you face, which clouds our vision, always questioning our path. What if I tell you that these self-doubts can actually be stepping stones? That's right. You can equip yourself with strategies that will help you stand your ground by learning how to dance in the rain rather than waiting for the storm to pass. So please get comfortable, grab your favorite drink and let's get right into it. But let's start with a question. Whenever you try to avoid a challenge, did it go away? It actually doesn't go away. It grows just like our laundry. The more we avoid it, the bigger the pile gets. Running from something makes it larger in our minds. Our minds has this unique way of processing fear. When we try to avoid it, we feed the fear or doubts even further, like adding fuel to a fire. When we avoid something, we are unconsciously telling ourselves, this is way too big, too hard, too scary for me. The tiny flame becomes a huge fire. So what do we do? We confront it. We face the challenge, even if it's in a small way. We become aware of it objectively. Have you been putting off some tasks? Start taking baby steps to do what you fear. Are you nervous about speaking and sharing your thoughts in small gatherings? Become aware of this doubt that you have and start dedicating even five minutes to it. Get your feet wet. By doing this, the fear or doubt loses its grip. Remember, it's often not the actual challenge or task that is the issue. It's our perception of it that holds us back. This is why it's super important to go after what you truly want. That big, beautiful goal. The goal that is powered by your heart. The goal that gets you out of bed with enthusiasm. When our objectives are deeply connected to our very essence, our innermost desires, it adds unimaginable strength to our pursuit. It overpowers our self-doubt. When your goal is just any goal or a goal that someone recommended that you should go after, it can easily disappear with just an ounce of doubt or by naysayers. However, when our goal is from your heart's desire, it's strong, resilient, and unbreakable. Doubts don't derail you, they help you. When I was pivoting from the COVID disaster, I decided to launch a podcast where I can up my environment, be around successful entrepreneurs. I had doubts, especially when I was hearing from others that you need to be an expert to do such a show. A podcast guru told me to go micro-niche. Entrepreneurship niche is too large and hard to penetrate. Fear and doubt were all around me and within. So I went back to my comfort zone. I started to work on launching a podcast on multidisciplinary clinics. To interview clinic owners on business development. And that's when I met Bob Proctor, the late Bob Proctor on a call and he blew me away, immediately felt like I found my answer, started the program called Thinking Into Results and it changed everything in my inner world. I trashed the clinic concept and went back to the mega niche concept, which is Super Entrepreneurs Podcast and became a certified consultant on the life changing program and now help others with their transformative journey. I became more self-aware and over time, the fears and doubts started to lose their grip. I became more understanding with the daily study of the mind, understanding myself, but others as well. The path has discomfort, no doubt, but isn't growth the very essence of entrepreneurship? The main purpose of us dream chasers is to grow. It's the journey, not the destination, my friend. So our fears are based on past experiences. They will surface and surface whenever something resonates with that fear. When we become aware of those fears or doubts objectively, they feel less important. This is, there is this profound strength in our awareness. Imagine you are standing by a serene lake. Every now and then a ripple disturbs the surface. The ripples are like the doubts that occasionally stir our minds. Instead of trying to calm the ripples or stop looking at them in the hopes that the ripples will stop, what if you just became aware of the ripples, allowing them to happen, just watching the ripples, the act of objectively recognizing and accepting the self doubts without trying to suppress them can be incredibly liberating. Knowing that those fears or doubts derive from past experiences or traumas and that they don't define us in the now. Just an impression on our subconscious mind from the past. By acknowledging these feelings, we are not giving them power. Instead, we are empowering ourselves to be bigger than those feelings. Here's an exercise you can try the next time you're, you face some doubts. So you close your eyes, take a deep breath, hold it in for a few seconds and release slow and steady and become aware of your breathing in and out and also become aware of those feelings without any judgment. Imagine, just imagine yourself stepping back from the situation and giving the feeling some space while being aware of it objectively. Open your eyes and say, this fear or doubt doesn't define me and close your eyes again and see yourself doing what you fear or doubt in a perfect manner. You can do this each time you are doubtful. To simplify it, you can just become aware of it and move forward courageously. Basically, self-awareness is like a light illuminating the shadows of doubt. This allows us to navigate our journey with enhanced clarity and purpose. So next time your doubts speak up, instead of ignoring them or pushing them away, just become aware of them and you will see what I mean. Please share your experience with this exercise. I would love to hear from you. So this is how you get comfortable with being uncomfortable. Take the action that scares you, baby steps. I have shared a very powerful concept that will help you continue your journey with more ease and flow towards your heart centered goal, a goal that you truly want. And remember you are super.