Empowering Your Creative Voice: How to Overcome the F-Word
Fear is holding you back from creating content and growing your audience online.
The F word.
No, I’m not talking about f**k.
I’m talking about the other four-letter F word - Fear.
More likely than not, fear is holding you back from creating content, publishing it, and growing your audience online.
Most of the sales reps I talk to WANT to build an audience online. They know that it will allow them to expand their reach, increase their authority, and, ultimately, increase their sales.
However, fear holds them back.
They might not always express it as a “fear.” But underneath the excuses they provide is often one of these commons fears:
Fear of Creating Content - Many of us fear not being good at creating content. We may think we are not creative enough to develop content ideas. Or we believe the content we create will be bad, and not worth posting online for others to see.
Fear of Lackluster Engagement - Tapping into our monkey minds, we also fear rejection from our social group. For social networks, this comes in fear that our content won’t be engaged with. We worry that we’ll get too few likes or comments, and make us look stupid amongst our peers.
Fear of The Unknown - Then there is the general fear of the unknown of creating content. Many reps aren’t sure if they are doing the right activities or question if/when they will see results. This fear of the unknown can cast doubt on all their efforts.
But no matter what specific fear you have, it’s essential to recognize that you have it. SOMETHING is holding you back from creating and publishing content that could dramatically improve your sales career.
If you can address that fear head-on, you’ll quickly realize that it isn’t so scary after all.
Shining a Light on the Monsters
As a father of two young children, I’m reminded daily that our fears are often overblown.
For instance, my youngest (now 4) developed a fear of the smoke detector in our hallway. This is after I recently tested it, as every responsible homeowner should, but I forgot to give her a head’s up that I was doing it.
It was business as usual for me. Bring over the chair, press the button, ensure it works, and move on.
But to her, it was the sound of pure evil! The chirps were sent from the depths of hell, and she would face certain doom. She ran out of the house crying in fear.
After some coaxing and ensuring her the beeping was over, I was able to get her back inside. However, she then developed a fear of walking past the smoke detector on her own.
She kept asking my wife or I to escort her to the bathroom or her bedroom. While it’s normal for a little kid to want their parent to accompany them on mundane tasks, I noticed it was every single time she needed to walk down that hallway.
So I finally asked her, “Alice, is there a reason you need me to come with you?”
(silence)
“Alice, you need to tell me if something is wrong so I can help.”
She finally confessed that she had a lingering fear of the smoke detector. We then had a nice heart-to-heart where I explained that the smoke detector was there to keep her safe and that I needed to test it to ensure it worked.
Moments like this help me remember that simply acknowledging our fears is a significant first step in overcoming them.
When we shine the light on the “monsters” in our room, we realize they are not so scary after all.
When it comes to the fear of creating content, let’s shine a light on the most common monsters:
- People won’t like you. - Simply put, some people won’t like you or your content. That’s reality, and that’s okay. You’re not for everyone.
- Most people won’t see it. - The vast majority of people won’t see the content you create. This should empower you, as it means the stakes for each piece of content are relatively low.
- Most people won’t care. - Of the people that do see your content, most won’t care about it. It takes time to develop a niche audience with a niche message that resonates. Those that don’t care will just ignore it.
- Nobody is perfect. - Even the most prolific content creators make mistakes. Typos in posts, bad lightning, misspeaking in videos… These are things that happen to everyone.
- Your content will suck. - If you are new to the content creation process, you’ll suck at first. Just like riding your bike or learning algebra, practicing it is the only way to improve.
As you shine a light on these monsters of content creation, hopefully they look less scary. While your brain might be terrified of making a mistake or that people won’t like what you have to say, the reality is that it’s not a big deal.
When we realize our fears are overblown, we can reduce our hesitation and begin to take action.
The Anectdoe to Fear
To truly overcome fear, there is only one true cure - action.
Taking the leap, doing the work, and progressing towards our goals is the ultimate fear-killer.
When we take action, we directly contradict that voice in our head telling us to be afraid. We show ourselves that it CAN be done and that WE can do it. Every step we take gives us that much more confidence in ourselves and our strategy.
Every little kid transitions from fear to happiness when the training wheels are taken off their bikes.
What seems like an impossible, daunting task of trying to stay up on two wheels at first, becomes nearly effortless with time.
But to learn to ride their bike, they need to take action:
- They need to peddle those first 5 seconds by themselves.
- Then 10 seconds by themselves.
- Then they need to fall down and cry.
- Then they need to get back up and peddle for 30 seconds by themselves.
Eventually, they build the confidence they need to be completely independent. They know what riding a bike “feels” like, and the fear is washed away.
With creating content, the best way to overcome your fear is to take action.
Create the content and publish it to your network. Do it again… Then, do it again.
Every time you take action, you’re actively overcoming fear. You’re quieting that voice in your head that is telling you not to move forward.
For this week’s action items, I want you to take action on your content creation fears. What’s holding you back from having the social selling success you’re capable of?
To make progress, do the following:
- Write Down Your Fears - Quickly write down your fears and concerns when creating content for social selling. Shine a light on the monsters in your head to see them objectively. Are they really that scary? Or were you making them out to be worse than they actually are?
- Take Action - Now, do the scary stuff. Address the fears you listed by taking action on at least one of those fears. Show yourself that you are capable of doing the work it takes to become an effective social seller and content creator.
Use this as an opportunity to become a master at overcoming your fears. Not just in creating content, but in all aspects of your life. Shine a light on those monsters, then take massive action!
What are your fears in creating content? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
Also, if you’ve enjoyed this article, please forward it to your friends and colleagues. I appreciate you helping to grow the Sell with Social community!