Overcoming Fears That Effect Your Business

Overcoming fears that affect your business is vital to maintain a positive mindset and outlook. Lately, there has been a lot of fear going around with the spread of the coronavirus, and as with any pandemic people begin to panic, instead of approaching any threat sensibly and calmly they allow their fears to overtake them.

Fears In Your Business

• What are the fears that you have regarding your business?
• How are they affecting your productivity?
• How are they keeping you from realizing your potential and living your dreams?

The beauty is you have control to determine the outcome, just as the coronavirus is going around you have the control to put precautions in place to ensure that you are protecting your wellbeing. How does that translate to your business?

Putting Your Fears To Rest

No one starts out in business without some apprehension the only difference is some entrepreneurs are not willing to continue life as status quo. They have made a commitment to face their fears to live their dreams.

You are the one who controls if your fears take center stage. What is the self chatter that you are saying to yourself?

• The industry is too saturated
• I don’t know If anyone is willing to buy my product or service
• I could never charge that much for my product
• I don’t know enough to be an expert
• I don’t know enough people who will buy my product or services
• I’m an introvert
• I will fail as an entrepreneur

And the list goes on, if this is your mindset then do you see how each fear-based thought continues to another fear-based thought until it has spread like wildfire.

Putting Systems In Place

To overcome fears in your business you have to be proactive in identifying them and putting a system in place to overcome them. Identify where those thoughts are coming from, where did your limiting beliefs originate from.

When I was a teenage there was always not enough it was a struggle growing up a teenager in high school and not having money to go out with friends or buy new clothes set within me a limiting belief that money was hard to come by and only certain people had access to it.

As an adult I continued with this mindset and it greatly affected my business in the beginning. Fear caused me not to step out and take risks afraid that I would lose what I put out and now I’m at a deficit.

It took me almost a year to turn this mindset around, because as a teenager when life’s circumstances happened they can leave an indelible print. It took a lot of mindset work for me to change those thoughts of scarcity.

Overcoming Fear Period

Life will throw you many curve balls that you may not have been prepared for and the way to overcome them is not to allow fear to be the controlling factor. Fear produces more fear, stress, anxiety and so on. 

Determine today you will not allow fear in your business or life to take you over, but you will overcome it by making preparations for it.

Fear Of Success

There is another fear that entrepreneurs can face and that is fear of success. Some entrepreneurs sabotage their business because the bottom line if they become successful then they become fearful that they will have to continue to keep it up and that thought becomes overwhelming.

Another fear-based thought process is when you put out the energy that your business is going to fail before it can get started is already a recipe for disaster, you have to approach your business with an optimistic outlook. 

Yes, we read the statistics that say how some businesses don’t make it past the 5yr mark, however, I would like to do a poll on those business owners. I want to know 

• Why did they quit?
• What was there mindset like when approaching their business?
• Did they have a plan in place?
• Did they make preparation for setbacks?
• Was their business venture profitable to begin with?
• Did they know their target market?
• Did they study their data?

All of those questions are the questions entrepreneurs should arm themselves when starting out, yes business is a lot of hard work and you have to stick with it until it makes a profit. My viewpoint is that’s how life is you have some seasons that are amazing and you have some that make you question everything. 

However, the key to overcoming fears that affect your business is to address them not ignore them, ask yourself the hard questions and stay committed to showing up in spite of those fears.

Don’t allow the fears of business to keep you from success and as well as the fears of society to keep you in panic mode take these precautions and keep a safe working environment.

Coronavirus And Cash

Here is some vital information to keep you informed during the Covid-19 Outbreak from Bankrate.com

Full-blown panic likely isn’t necessary in the age of the coronavirus. But medical experts say consumers should be cautious, particularly with what they do with their hands after pulling out a wad of cash or making a withdrawal from an ATM.

COVID-19 mainly spreads through droplets released into the air when someone who’s gotten infected coughs or sneezes. But it can also be contracted through the surfaces we come into contact with, says Dr. Ellen Foxman, an assistant professor in Yale’s Department of Laboratory Medicine.

“It really can stay on surfaces for like, several days, including things you touch, like cash,” Foxman explains.

Just how contaminated dollar bills may actually be is one of many concerns consumers might have as they consider the financial implications of the coronavirus and the way they interact with banks.

Slim chance of catching the virus from cash

The United States now has the highest number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the world, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The virus is spreading rapidly, but the chance of being infected after handling cash is still low, experts say, compared to other methods of potentially getting infected.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website, “It may be possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes, but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.”

China’s central bank disinfected and did away with potentially tainted cash that could have been carrying the virus. But the U.S. Federal Reserve hasn’t gone quite that far.

“The Federal Reserve is in close contact with the CDC to ensure we are aware of the latest thinking on how COVID-19 spreads,” a spokesperson from the Fed says. “Currently, the CDC has determined that COVID-19 spreads mainly through person-to-person contact.”

Despite what was reportedly misunderstood in an article recently published in the U.K., the World Health Organization has not issued any warnings about the possibility of spreading the coronavirus through the use of cash.

While cash is no longer the No. 1 payment choice among American consumers, it’s used in more than one in four transactions. Avoiding cash for some groups, such as low-income households, may be just as unfeasible as avoiding touching a door handle. What’s more, for anyone concerned about catching the coronavirus, the best prevention method is perhaps just washing your hands, particularly before eating or touching your face, Foxman says.

Other banking-related concerns over coronavirus

Banks have already taken many steps to grapple with the spread of the coronavirus. Some, like Citi and Marcus by Goldman Sachs, are waiving early withdrawal penalties for customers with CDs. Others are waiving fees and allowing payments to be deferred.

Institutions like PNC and Truist (formed from the merger of SunTrust and BB&T banks) are mainly providing in-branch services through drive-thru lanes. And in many cases, customers have to make an appointment online before going into a branch. Banks have also adjusted their hours and reduced the amount of time customers can be inside branches.

As the coronavirus spreads, this is a good opportunity for consumers to take advantage of their bank’s digital tools, says Bob Neuhaus, vice president of Global Financial Services at J.D. Power. But that could be difficult depending on where you bank and how familiar you are with digital banking channels. Neuhaus says quite a few consumers are still branch-dependent and half don’t even use their bank’s mobile app.

“What we call digital-centricity is much higher at the biggest banks than it is at the regional and midsize banks. The midsize banks and the regionals to some degree cater to a somewhat older clientele that’s less digitally-oriented,” Neuhaus says. “And I think there you may see more stress and disruption because people will have to change the way they do their day-to-day banking to a greater degree than somebody who’s much more digitally savvy and used to doing their banking online.”

A portion of bank customers are already adjusting the way they bank in light of the coronavirus. In a recent J.D. Power survey, 15 percent of respondents said they’re planning to use public touch screens such as ATMs and self-service checkout less due to concerns about the virus. Ten percent say they’ll visit branches less often.

“Banks have been focusing on the issue of business continuity, meaning keeping their doors open, keeping the business operating,” Neuhaus says. “But I don’t know if they’ve been able to prepare for the psychological impact and the need to help make their customers more comfortable with the situation and more confident.”

How consumers can prepare for the worst

Consumers should have their own financial plan in place as confirmed cases of the coronavirus increase.

This is a good time to focus on saving money in case conditions get worse. Banks and credit unions are lowering yields, but if you shop around and compare rates, you can find some paying close to 2 percent APY to savings account holders. Locking in a good yield on a CD is something to consider sooner rather than later. Stay tuned for the latest updates on the economic stimulus plan and consider how you’ll use payments the government is hoping to send directly to Americans.

For borrowers, it’s recommended that you over-communicate if you’re concerned about your ability to make payments on time as a result of the outbreak.

“Pad the emergency savings account and have contact info for your financial institution and other creditors handy in case you are quarantined or incapacitated for any period of time,” says Greg McBride, CFA, Bankrate chief financial analyst. “In such an instance, you’ll want to keep them in the loop regarding your situation.”