Feel The Fear...

I’m a creature of comfort – I don’t mind admitting that.

So, what the hell was I thinking when I decided to leave my secure, well-paid full time job?

Well, it’s very easy to become very comfortable in a job (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing). You know what to expect day-to-day, and you’re super confident in your knowledge and what is expected of you. It’s a wonderful feeling… for a while. Ride this wave of comfort for too long though, and apathy begins to set in.

Everyone is different, but I seem to have a natural ‘expiry’ of about 6-7 years in a job. Around that mark, I start to get itchy feet and crave something new. This is exactly what happened when I decided to launch my VA business last year.

Changing jobs is always scary but making the leap from a full-time employee to self-employed was a terrifying prospect. Desperately in need for a change though, I felt the fear and did it anyway.

To begin with, every time I took on a new client it felt like applying for a new job – discovery calls felt like job interviews. And then every time I took on a new contract, I felt like the new girl – having to get to grips very quickly with systems and software I hadn’t used before. I was feeling the anxiety and fear that comes with starting a new job on a daily basis.

You may be thinking ‘why would you want to put yourself through that?’, but I can tell you it has done wonders for my personal growth and confidence. I have overcome and achieved so much more than I thought I ever could.

I’ve come to realise that while comfort is a nice thing to have, it can leave you blinkered and incapable of reaching your full potential. It’s sometimes good to feel the fear and do things which are out of your comfort zone – you’ll be surprised at what you can achieve!