Fear of error: why people are afraid to make mistakes

The fear of making mistakes is familiar to every person. This anxious feeling allows a person to avoid hasty decisions and the consequences associated with them, but often it slows us down, preventing us from taking actions that lead to success. However, a person has the power to overcome the fear of mistakes and continue to move forward. Think about whether a child will be able to ride a bike or skate if he refuses to try again after the first fall? Will he be able to learn to swim if he doesn't take off the inflatable ring? Probably not. Fear of error affects an adult in a similar way - it blocks the path to success, preventing a person from making new attempts.

Signs of Fear of Failure

Individuals who are afraid of not succeeding doubt that they have good mental abilities.
Atychiphobes love to measure their own IQ using “modern” tests several times a day. They are terribly afraid of disappointing those whose opinions are important to them. Therefore, they are told that “the chances of success are low.” Individuals who are firmly held in their clutches by the fear of failure have a sea of “physical” and “mental” symptoms of phobia. When fear of failure sets in, they:

the chest is compressed, the pulse is jumping, everything is spinning before the eyes;
lips and hands are shaking;
throws you into heat, then into cold;
the stomach doesn't work well.

Due to the fear of failure, individuals feel completely confused and feel that the situation is in control of them, and not they are in control of the situation. Atychiphobes also engage in “self-sabotage” - they quit something halfway. It seems to them that it is better to go up the mountain and not go up than to end up giving birth to a mouse. This is why people with a fear of failure are inveterate “downshifters” whose career growth is blocked. For people who are perfectionists, self-sabotage is especially dangerous. It ends in a complete stupor of will, when a person, out of fear of “messing up,” refuses even basic things. Doesn’t brush his teeth - he’s afraid that he’ll “fail” and leave plaque on his teeth; does not relieve minor needs in public toilets - he is afraid that he will “miss.”

Characteristic signs

The fear of making a mistake is quite reasonable when faced with something previously unknown. And, if, in spite of everything, we step over ourselves and move on, then this is normal. If fear constrains us, then we stand still, and at the same time we earn stress and nervous shock.

A person may not even notice that he has such a phobia. The following signs may indicate that the fear of error has already conquered you:

reluctance to make changes in life;
avoiding tasks that have not been dealt with before;
presence of unfinished business;
the desire to do only what one is good at;
fear of participating in public events, fear of failure;
self-sabotage;
lack of desire to strive to make new achievements;
lack of self-confidence;
desire to be the best.

Before committing any action, which may be followed by an error, in addition to psychological manifestations, physiological manifestations may also be observed:

tachycardia;
pain in the heart area;
labored breathing;
burning sensation in the chest;
nausea;
shortness of breath;
muscle spasms;
possible diarrhea;
stiffness or, conversely, increased excitability is observed;
throws you into the cold, then into the heat, chills are possible;
the appearance of hallucinations, in particular auditory ones, is possible.

Fear can grow from within

Internal reasons that cause fear of defeat are most often a banal fear of responsibility and a subconscious attitude towards defeat. Basically, responsibility of any kind is avoided by people with an infantile character who do not want to accept “adult” rules. And the mindset of defeat, which significantly reduces the likelihood of success, is a consequence of a pessimistic outlook on life and a biased assessment of one’s abilities.

Naturally, a person who is confident of failure is likely to make a mistake, and several such failures in a row will lead him to the idea that it would be best to give up trying to do something in order not to experience disappointment.

In addition, the fear of mistakes is characteristic of perfectionists, that is, people who persistently strive for perfection in any area. They make such high demands on themselves and the results of their actions that it is impossible to achieve them accurately. As a result, perfectionists enter the game only if they are one hundred percent sure of success, and the fear of error holds them back from other actions.

Simple exercises against fear of failure

Some simple exercises can also help combat the fear of failure.

When the fear of losing sets in, let’s drive it away with deep breathing.

Making fear go away is not at all difficult. We proceed like this:

Fear makes breathing quick and short. We return everything to normal with the help of deep, slow breaths.
We slowly inhale oxygen through the nose for 5–10 seconds. We do this with the diaphragm, so that during inhalation and exhalation it is the abdominal cavity that moves, not the chest cavity.
We also exhale carbon dioxide slowly through the nose. Let's exhale completely!

We repeat this simple exercise until the fear of failure is gone. This will happen quickly - in 5 minutes maximum.

Fear tenses your muscles. If you relax them, fear will instantly loosen its grip:

alternately tense and relax different muscle groups;
We start with the feet, then move higher - to the calves, thighs, stomach. We “go through” the whole body.

Manifestations of Fear of Failure

Recognizing a person who is constantly afraid of making a mistake is actually not particularly difficult. He behaves extremely insecurely, constantly looking at the opinions of others. If we look at such a person in more detail, it turns out that she suffers from numerous phobias, sometimes having absolutely no idea what to strive for in life. Let us consider in more detail exactly what manifestations characterize the emerging fear of failure.

Increased anxiety

A person worries endlessly about literally everything. If any difficulties arise related to your personal life, work or study, then a lot of tension begins to be felt. Some people become so fearful that they are afraid to take any action at all. It seems to them that a series of failures will haunt them constantly, not giving them the opportunity to come to their senses and try to change anything in life.

Diffidence

Fear of failure makes you experience very painful feelings. Some people shut themselves off so much from anything that could bring them grief that they miss out on all the good things. It must be said that the fear of expecting failure literally attracts her. When we are overly focused on the bad, this is usually what happens. In most cases, people attract negative energy completely unconsciously. Self-doubt does not allow you to move to new heights or set achievable goals. You need to be open to new experiences. Only then will they be able to enter our lives.

Fear of action

This is the main characteristic of a person who has a strong fear of failure. Fear of taking any steps towards the desired result results in even bigger problems in the future. A person focuses on what he worries about, and not at all on what he really wants.

Avoiding new opportunities

The point is that when an individual is afraid of significant changes in his life, he unconsciously begins to run away from learning something new. The thing is that he is afraid to make a mistake. After all, when we take any step, we are forced to take responsibility for what is happening. And if the result does not satisfy us, then this will be a strong disappointment, confirmation that the wrong decision was made. To fail means to admit defeat, to discover an existing problem. For some, this is tantamount to admitting their own weakness.

Predisposition

In most cases, atychiphobia originates from childhood, when the child is still dependent on mom and dad. If children's mistakes are accompanied by criticism from adults, children begin to feel weak and helpless.

When children are shouted at, all the negative energy is deposited in the subconscious , and the attitudes “I can’t do anything”, “I can’t”, etc. are “recorded” in them. These attitudes make adults panic since childhood.

Excessive care also provokes phobia. If mom and dad did all the things for the child, looked after him, the child will form the attitude that he cannot do anything, that others will do it better.

That is, children are more predisposed to atychiphobia . But when they grow up, this negativity remains in their minds.

Atychiphobia occurs in people who do not notice beauty and do not know how to appreciate it. This syndrome also affects suspicious people who take any information to heart.

The danger of this phobia is that it creeps up unnoticed . At first the person simply decides to postpone the matter, then again and again. He does not suspect that he is losing the ability to overcome difficulties.

The Nature of Fear

There is no point in fighting your fear. You just need to figure out the cause of the phobia, and then learn to overcome it. The fear of making a mistake is primarily a lack of self-confidence. A person is afraid to look ridiculous in the eyes of others; he does not fully feel his strength. It turns out that such fear is just an illusion that can be easily destroyed with the help of rational arguments.

The fear of doing something difficult is easily overcome.

There are several effective ways to help combat phobias.

All people make mistakes. You just need to realize that there may be ups and downs along the way. It is impossible to imagine life without this. You should not avoid wrong actions; sometimes they lead to a positive result in a strategy. Happens. that mistakes are made deliberately in order to gain a certain experience and get through it as quickly as possible. Sometimes certain circumstances arise that a person cannot influence, it is important to simply go through them and draw conclusions. Perfect people do not exist; they are not born with ideals. Even the most confident individuals can make mistakes, this is normal and natural. Mistakes are experiences that help a person move forward. Bad experiences can bring much more benefit than the most positive moments in life.

Thanks to mistakes, an individual learns caution, he constantly weighs every step, and learns to accept defeat. Forewarned is forearmed. There are no wrong actions, only poorly calculated actions.

you need to prepare for the worst case scenario, but at the same time set yourself up for the positive. If an individual constantly makes mistakes, then at some point this becomes a habit, and is perceived by consciousness as a normal phenomenon. Failure stimulates growth. Any actions help development. You should not pay attention to those who constantly point out shortcomings or laugh at erroneous actions. People who are confident in themselves perceive failure as a natural process.

The fear of doing something wrong is not fatal. You can easily overcome this phobia

It is important to constantly work on yourself, to realize the illusory nature of fear, to perceive failures and losses as simply as possible

The place of phobias in psychology and psychiatry

In psychology and psychiatry, a whole section is devoted to the study of the problem. Experts know that this problem occurs in many people, so it is important to develop effective methods for providing assistance.

Psychotherapists consider atychiphobia a serious deviation , because a person’s fear is so powerful that the personality no longer wants to develop, it becomes passive.
A person is no longer capable of a normal life - he is always nervous, worried, and cannot find a place for himself.

Due to psychological problems, he cannot find a job, does not strive for career growth, and becomes depressed. This all aggravates the course of the disease.

There are no pathologies directly similar to the fear of failure. But there are conditions that arise as a result of untreated atychiphobia, such as self-doubt, depression and even the tendency to harm oneself.

How to overcome

It's important to realize that everyone can make mistakes.

“I’m afraid to make a mistake and don’t know what to do” – if this sounds like you, then the following tips will be useful.

Try to understand the reason for your fear, analyze this situation.
Learn to say “no” if you know you won’t be able to complete the task.
Be calm about possible losses in case of failure. Assess possible risks in advance and be prepared for them.
Have a backup plan up your sleeve.
Be more decisive, don't be afraid to act.
Understand that every person in his life faces ups and downs and makes mistakes. It's quite normal.
We have to make mistakes, we learn from them.
Believe in yourself and your strength. You can achieve a lot, you just need to try.
If the task at hand seems overwhelming to you, do not rush to give up. Gradually you will master it. Nothing comes right the first time.
If you are afraid that you will be criticized for failure at work, then turn to more experienced employees for help and ask for advice. Rest assured that everyone has made mistakes when starting their career path.
Try to achieve success in some business, failures in which will not harm your self-esteem. Having become accustomed to allowing failures in that area, it will be easier for you to cope with your fear, especially if the failures ultimately end in great success.
Do not think that successful and strong people are not afraid of anything. They also experience fear, but not so pronounced. You can also overcome it and become a more sought-after specialist.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=rVNblsr9LQ8

How to help your baby

Parents should set a personal example for their child.
If your child is afraid of making mistakes, then the following tips will help him cope with his fear.

Play out situations in front of your baby in which you will make mistakes. You just need to do this without being intrusive

It is important that the little one understands that everyone can make mistakes. React correctly to your offspring's mistakes. You don’t need to yell at him, but you shouldn’t say that there’s nothing wrong with his offense, the baby may understand everything wrong. If the little one is worried about a mistake he made, praise him for something else. Explain to your child that making a mistake is preceded by some wrong action. Focus your child’s attention on the fact that mistakes are necessary for experience.

This is how he becomes wiser. Teach your child to analyze mistakes made.

I'm afraid to make a mistake, fear of failure is a natural reaction of a healthy body. However, sometimes it develops into a pathological process

It is important to identify the formation of a phobia in a child in time and begin to fight this fear. Remember that a person with a fear of making mistakes has a very difficult life in the modern world; there is no opportunity for self-development

He is not able to reach the peaks that are realistically within his reach. This is why it is so important to start getting rid of a phobia on time. Don’t forget that you can always seek help from a specialist if you can’t solve the problem on your own. A psychologist will help identify the cause of the development of fear and help overcome fear that has been developing over many years.

Causes

The fear of making a mistake begins in childhood.
The fear of making a mistake begins to form in childhood. This is where it takes its origins, like most phobias. This could be the culprit:

criticism from parents over poorly done homework, ugly handwriting, unsuccessful paintings or crafts;
receiving severe punishment for an offense;
lack of approval when wanting to do something new;
publicly experienced failure;
ridiculing mistakes made in a group of children;
The school assessment system provokes the child to be afraid of making mistakes and getting a bad grade. What’s interesting is that more often than not, it is the C students who achieve great success in life, thanks to the fact that they are accustomed to failure, while the excellent students worry all the time about a possible mistake in their actions and remain indecisive.

Parents, through their actions, unconsciously plant in the toddler’s subconscious the fear of possible failures and failures. This is why a mature person is afraid to take on something where there is no guarantee of success. With their thoughtless words, parents can achieve a neglected state in which the child develops obsessive-compulsive personality disorder.

Signs of chronophobia

Chronophobia has two main symptoms: it seems to the patient that he does not have time to do anything and is constantly late for something, that time is running out, or, conversely, the patient feels that time is dragging on endlessly. In both cases, the individual becomes fixated on time, his anxiety, the feeling of lack of time, the senseless waste of allotted time. He no longer sees, hears, or notices anything.

What thoughts haunt a chronophobe:

“it will never end”;
“when will this come”;
“I don’t have time (I won’t have time)”;
“I don’t know how much time I still have”;
“suddenly, I’ve lived half my life”;
other.

What other symptoms are noticeable when the patient feels anxious and depressed:

discomfort that is difficult to describe;
increased anxiety;
nervousness;
increased excitability;
derealization;
depersonalization;
feeling of loss.

Some patients often glance at their watches, while other individuals, on the contrary, refuse to wear a watch. The actions of a chronophobe look fussy and nervous. Sometimes a chronophobe falls into a stupor, and sometimes he chaotically grabs onto everything in a row and comes up with meaningless activities for himself. The face reflects despair, melancholy, and panic. Most chronophobes are so afraid of lack of time that they prefer to live one day at a time and not make any plans for the future. Others get hung up on little things; on the contrary, they try to plan everything in as much detail as possible, and are afraid of free time.

During panic attacks, somatic manifestations of phobia are observed:

headache;
dizziness;
cardiopalmus;
gastrointestinal disorder;
shiver;
tremor of the limbs;
frequent, shallow, uneven breathing;
chest pain;
feeling of suffocation;
fainting state;
fainting.

Symptoms

Negative emotional reactions manifest themselves in situations that require specific decisions or actions from a person. These include:

uncertainty about further actions;
anxiety;
guilt;
soul-searching;
depression and constant replay of traumatic events in the head.

Symptoms accompanying atychiphobia can be not only psychological, but also somatic:

increased sweating;
shiver;
pale skin;
interruptions in heart function;
impaired breathing;
nausea.

In this condition, a person’s perception of the temperature regime changes: when it’s cold outside, he feels hot, and vice versa.

In children, phobia manifests itself in the form of low self-esteem . For example, when parents demand the best results from a child in everything (in school, sports and various sections), he is accompanied by constant tension.

In addition, if they do not encourage the child for successes, but scold him for failures, his idea of achievements will be distorted. He realizes that he is not capable of achieving success.

When a child is ridiculed in kindergarten or at school, this affects his psyche, and in the future he develops a fear of failure.

Adults suffering from atychiphobia are always anxious; they worry before any event. If they are asked to do any work, in addition to anxious feelings, they are accompanied by a rapid heartbeat, a burning sensation in the stomach, and pale skin. Such people's hands become cowardly and their pulse quickens. For example, before an interview, a person’s sleep is disturbed and panic attacks may occur.

How to get the maximum

It’s normal to be afraid of mistakes, learn not to scold yourself for mistakes and accept them as a stepping stone to success.
Choose a job you like! History knows many examples of people giving up good jobs for big money to raise cows, for example. Therefore, choose a direction in which you are really interested in developing. Then mistakes will be perceived as a learning phase.
Objectively assess your capabilities. It’s like with a story about a bicycle - don’t you know how? Learn. And there is no guarantee that you will be able to avoid hurtful falls in the process. To develop, you need to understand what other skills are missing to achieve professional happiness.
Fix errors and sort them out. Keep a diary, blog, write and look for answers to the questions: what caused the failure? If there were several of them, what united them? And then rule out every factor and be patient.
Accept yourself, respect your knowledge and skills. In IT, medicine, pedagogy and other professions, you must constantly keep your finger on the pulse and learn. You can't know everything all the time. Don’t belittle your existing skills, they are the basis for growth.
Don't be shy to ask for help. There are more people who are adequate and ready to share knowledge than those who will ignore the request. Communicate with professionals online, look for thematic public pages, be bolder.
Remember that there are situations that are beyond your control. If you have done everything on your part, but force majeure circumstances intervene, do not panic. It will not change anything. Have a plan B for the future.

And never give up. Fortune favors the brave.

Reasons for fear of failure

Nothing arises out of nowhere, without visible reasons. So there are reasons for this phobia. If there is such a problem, you need to try to figure it out as soon as possible. Only a deep immersion in your own world will help you overcome feelings of hopelessness and melancholy.

Negative experience

When faced with severe disappointments, self-confidence certainly decreases. Negative experiences sometimes have such a strong impact that you no longer want to make any attempts to correct the unsatisfactory situation. Fear of failure fetters you from within and limits any endeavors. As a result, a person is afraid to act at all, even when it is absolutely necessary. Going through a large number of negative impressions certainly leaves an imprint on the individual’s perception of reality. A person becomes distrustful, irritable, overly suspicious, even gloomy. Sometimes it can be hard to believe that better changes can happen to you. People are designed in such a way that they always rely on previous experience, whatever it may be. If something in the past has made you doubt your own capabilities, it becomes very difficult to believe that joy and happiness awaits you ahead.

Miseducation

If from childhood our parents limited our freedom in every possible way, in the future it will be very difficult to believe in ourselves. Self-confidence is something that accumulates over the years. Improper upbringing can undermine adequate self-esteem and make an individual withdrawn. Mistrust and unsociability are also consequences of parental mistakes. The result is a fear of taking the wrong actions. Such a person doubts for a long time and, before taking specific actions, consults with everyone, thinks and analyzes a lot.

Causes of atychiphobia

Fear of embarrassment can be caused by completely different reasons. The predominant reason remains the person’s existing negative experience. Because of the fear of failure, a person projects the experience of one incident onto all of his possible experiences.

Some people experience that kind of fear of failure that they don’t even want to think about the possibility of trying something and starting something. This stereotypical form of thinking, as it seems to a person, protects him from mistakes. In fact, she prevents any movement in his life.

The reasons why people are afraid to do any activity can be:

Connection with childhood fear, when in childhood the child was severely punished for any mistakes.
The inability to make mistakes in a group, ridicule of any mistake - most often the inability to overcome fear arises in a group of teenagers, at school or college.
Many fears are also driven by social fears imposed by the environment - a person begins to fear that if he is worse than others, he will be rejected.

Reasons for development

There are many reasons for fear of failure .
The most common is negative experiences in the past. Often a person makes a conclusion based on one case. Such people are sure that if they made a mistake once, then failure will accompany them for the rest of their lives. This stereotype does not allow them to develop, moving forward.

One of the reasons for the fear of failure is the assessment of a person’s performance based on the final results. He does not take into account personal qualities and characteristics. The individual attaches a stigma and does not understand the situation, does not evaluate his own talents and the reasons for the wrong action.

Main causes of atychiphobia:

negative reaction of parents (and other relatives) to their children’s failures;
listening to insults and ridicule directed at oneself (at school, on the street, etc.);
the imposition of social fears by society, when a person is told that he should be better than others.

How to get rid of the fear of time

Chronophobia is one of the most complex phobias. The object of fear cannot be seen or touched. The transience of time, the fear of not being on time, the uncertainty of the future - all this is abstract and subjective. Therefore, psychologists do not recommend self-medication; it is better to immediately consult a specialist.

Hypnosis and neurolinguistic programming are used to treat chronophobia. Additional methods are cognitive-behavioral, individual, group psychotherapy and medication. Medicines are prescribed only for pronounced somatic symptoms and serious mental changes. The treatment program is selected individually.

Psychotherapy

The main method is cognitive behavioral psychotherapy. Tasks, questions, working methods are selected individually. The specialist’s task is to convince the patient that his fears are irrational. The specialist helps the client develop critical thinking, learn to control thoughts, emotions, and reactions.

How to help yourself

It is necessary by willpower to switch attention from anxiety and fear of the passage of time to living an active, rich life. It is necessary to determine its purpose and meaning, make a plan for the week, month, year

It is recommended to use yoga practices as aids for calming: pranayama, qigong, meditation. These techniques help calm the mind and teach you to control emotions and thoughts. In addition, it is recommended to use affirmations.

It is important! Self-medication is effective only at an early stage. The problem is that patients rarely notice the onset of the disease

Symptoms are usually noticeable at the stage when self-medication will no longer help.

Forms of the disease

Before you start looking for ways to overcome fear, you need to consider its forms. There are several manifestations of the disease:

Self-isolation . The person does not take on any business and does not strive for self-development. He has a fear of rejection in his personal life. He withdraws into himself and does not interact with people.
Self-sabotage . If an individual takes on any task, he will not complete it or will not submit it on time. This is a condition in which a person creates obstacles for himself in the way of doing work.
Perfectionism . A person does not try to be the best in all endeavors, but only in those that he is good at. He focuses on what he will fail at.
Self-flagellation . A person convinces himself that he doesn’t know how to do anything, he doesn’t have enough knowledge and has no talents.

At the early stage of the disease, a person’s self-esteem decreases, he does not believe in himself, and blames himself for every little thing. Moderate and severe degrees are characterized by refusal to attend various events, isolation from people (even acquaintances), narrowing of social circles, fear of starting even easy and familiar work.

How to get rid of a phobia

This fear significantly reduces a person’s quality of life, interferes with his self-development and professional activities, personal life and networking. Therefore, assistance in advanced cases should be provided by a specialist.

Don't be afraid to remember the moments when fear first appeared. It is necessary to analyze the reasons why this or that business did not take place. Even if the cause was inattention or another personal factor, you should not take too much responsibility on yourself.
The cause of the pathology may be constant ignorance or unknown. To avoid this, you should have a solid theoretical basis before starting any business. Then possible risks will be significantly reduced.
Learn to refuse if you feel that you cannot cope with any task. Don't take risks unless they are justified.
Soberly assess the losses that are possible if the task assigned to you is not completed. Missed opportunities sometimes become much greater losses than the feeling of fear.
Always have a backup plan. This way you will have a safety net that if things go wrong, you will be able to change it. For example, enlist the help of a friend or colleague.
Be more decisive, any delay will only increase fear. Create a situation in which you cannot retreat.
Finally, believe that failures happen to absolutely everyone. But the most rational thing is to use them as a springboard for further start and improvement of yourself.

Psychologists use methods of analysis and self-analysis to treat such fear, providing the patient with a thorough examination of the reasons why he considers any enterprise a failure.

When do you need professional help?

If a person cannot cope with the problem on his own, it is necessary to contact a specialist. At the initial stage , a professional will prescribe individual psychotherapy aimed at analyzing memories from childhood.

An individual conversation with a psychotherapist will reveal the attitude of an atychiphobe to his own fears. In this case, the modeling method is used - creating a situation that causes indecision, and asking you to describe the sensations from the beginning of the situation to its end.

Group therapy is also . Working in a group, a person understands that he is not alone, that there are other people suffering from phobias. Patients support each other and find a way out of the situation together.

Often, in addition to psychotherapy, psychiatrists prescribe maintenance therapy (anti-anxiety and sedative medications) to such patients.

How to get rid of the fear of failure

This is a very important question that it is better to try to clarify for yourself as soon as possible. You need to know how to overcome this painful feeling and not stop believing in your own prospects. A person will have to work a lot on himself, change his attitude towards life. Without this step it is impossible to grow, to rise above the most disturbing situation. So, how to overcome the fear of failure, what actions need to be taken?

Setting goals

This is the first place to start. You need to imagine in which direction you want to move, what results you are going to achieve. It is best to write down your desires on paper. This will give the necessary impetus to implement them in reality. Setting goals helps you organize your life correctly and set priorities in a timely manner.

Gaining practice

When thinking about how to remove the fear of action, you should definitely make the right decision. In any case, constant practice will be required here. The more effort you put in, the better results you can achieve.

It is extremely important not to give in to the difficulties that arise, but to try to solve them in all available ways. Only constant actions can change our lives for the better

Making Positive Decisions

You need to act in such a way that the result is truly pleasing. Make your decision with a smile on your face. Don't be afraid to change your life so much that it will bring surprises. It is in this case that internal transformation can occur, without which no personal growth can take place. Our soul needs to change, to gain a different perspective on the usual understanding of things.

Thus, the fear of failure actually greatly interferes with life. A person cannot enjoy everyday events while being captive of his illusory ideas. This requires fruitful work with a specialist. If you need help and don’t know how to get rid of negative thoughts, then contact the Irakli Pozharisky Center for Psychology and Rehabilitation for advice.