I recently went on vacation with my husband and two daughters. While traveling and relaxing in beautiful Jamaica, I couldn’t help but think about the many situations in life and business where fears crop up and we are forced to either face them, or else allow the fear to win. Normally, I wouldn’t describe myself as a fearful person, but during my vacation I had to consider reconsidering if that statement is true. ;)

Jamaica is known to be impoverished in many areas, and parts of the country are not safe for tourists. I couldn’t help but feel a little on~guard as I evaluated our taxi driver and checked in with my intuition about whether he was going to take us straight to the resort or hijack us. This is a thought that always takes over when I’m in a cab, especially when I’m traveling alone. My intuition gave me the “all clear” sign and we arrived at the resort safely.

As we enjoyed the sand, sunshine and poolside days, I wondered if we were getting too much sun and exposing ourselves to the possibility of skin cancer down the road. At the very least, there is always pre-mature aging to worry about. I had packed non-toxic EWG.org approved sunscreen, but were five tubes enough for four of us over 11 days?

As my kids swam in the ocean, I couldn’t help to be concerned about jelly-fish, undertow, and sharks. At the very least, we had forgotten the ocean shoes and there might have been sharp coral and rocks.  Believe me, I know what a scaredy-cat I’m sounding like here.

In all seriousness, it was a fantastic vacation, we relaxed, we played, we met new friends, and enjoyed being together. We were ready to get back home after getting our fill of everything a great vacation provides. The plane ride home was rather turbulent at one point, which got me to thinking whether there is any great experience that doesn’t offer the opportunity to face and conquer fear.

Of course my fleeting fears while on vacation were in regards to safety. It reminded me of the quote “There is a time to take counsel of your fears, and there is a time to never listen to any fear”, by George S. Patton. The time to never listen to fear is when the fear is in regards to success.

There is certainly many fears to be faced when owning a business. Some people have a fear of becoming successful, while others fear failure. Many people are afraid of putting themselves out there, being visible and getting the attention they deserve, the reasons for which are infinite.

I wouldn’t ever allow a little healthy fear preclude me from going on a fun vacation with my family in a tropical location. Don’t we all face fears on a daily basis? From driving in rush hour to getting dental work, learning how to cope with and manage things that are scary is a necessary skill.

Why then isn’t it easier for entreprenuers to conquer fears? Isn’t swimming with a shark scarier than doing a presentation for school of them? It’s like the old joke that most people fear public speaking more so than death, so they would rather be in the casket than speaking at the service.

I just wanted to share these thoughts and see if it resonates, I’m not going to turn this into a “top three ways to face your fear” type of post. Besides, I think we all know that the best way to face fear because we do it so often in other areas of life.

What’s one fear you would like to face in regards to business? This worry-wart would love to know.