Four Ways to Overcome Fear as An Entrepreneur
November 14, 2023
By Te’Jal Cartwright, Founder, What’s The Biz
As an entrepreneur, fear can show up at any moment! When we want to try something new with our business, when we start to expand, when we pursue a major opportunity, fear can rear up.
But we can’t let fear stop us. Instead, we must harness it as a tool.
I was really nervous to produce a Season 4 of What’s the Biz with TJ. Seasons 1-3 felt so organic, fun, and simple. But much like my show, I was evolving, and I couldn’t continue to create the same content anymore. Interviewing Black business owners helped me realize that there were deeper issues that we have as a community. But I feared a new season, a different format, wouldn’t hit. Questions bounced around my head: Will this next season be great? Will people understand my intentions? Will viewers see the truth or disregard it?
After spending two years contemplating and living in fear, I finally decided to execute. We just released episode two of our final season, and I can’t help but think about how I pushed through and made the fourth season a reality (with the help of my team and Launch Dayton of course).
Hindsight is 20/20, so I took the time to think about what helped me when I experienced fear in my business.
Here are some tips I’d like to share:
- Collaborate with others that understand your business vision. I know I’ve covered this a lot, but working with other people is truly the magic sauce. Having people around you that get it can give you the energy you need to execute your ideas. Doing things alone can be daunting and tiring, but when you collaborate, the people around you are able to lift your chin when you’re not feeling so hot. Or give you time and space to keep your head down for as long as you need.
- Meditate and welcome fear in your life. I had to take a lot of moments to myself and think about why I was feeling nervous and how I could bring those feelings along for the ride instead of working to get rid of them. Fear doesn’t go away, but it can transform into excitement and power if you’re intentional about it. Getting to the root of why I felt fearful gave me the insight that I needed to move forward.
- Talk to mentors and fellow professionals. I’ve learned that talking to entrepreneurs that are in the same field as me is LIFE SAVING. Being an entrepreneur in the media industry is a whole different beast. I’ve had to get creative with my conversations and find professionals and mentors that are advanced or knowledgable about the media scene. Once I found my people, it was like I finally felt heard when I would talk about the specific emotions that I was feeling. And finding a mentor doesn’t have to be hard. Check out some of the local orgs that can connect you to mentors here.
- Give your project 100 percent and take notes. Be your best self at whatever you’re pursuing, and I can guarantee that you’ll feel good no matter what. I know season 4 will have an impact, and I know the WTB team gave this final season everything we had in this moment, and I am really proud of that. I am most excited about taking everything that I learned from my first show and using it in the (very near) future.
Someone once said, fear has two meanings: Forget everything and run, or forget everything and rise. In the end, you have to choose which of those last steps that you take. I hope you choose to rise! You can do it.
Let me know if these tools work for you, or if you have a few of your own that you’d like to share!
Launch Dayton is thrilled to partner with Te’Jal and her team to produce the final season of What’s the Biz. Check out Ep. 1 and Ep. 2, and stay tuned to socials and our newsletter as episodes drop!
