How to launch when you hate being in the spotlight

One of the scary things about launching for many of you is the fact that you have to put yourself out there – you have to step into the spotlight and actually show up. 

I’ve spent the last couple of years working through my own fear of being in the spotlight and now I can say that it’s not really an issue for me anymore – but it certainly was a few years ago.

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5 tips to help you launch when you hate being in the spotlight.

As I mentioned, I’ve spent the last couple of years working through my own fear of being in the spotlight and now I can say that it’s not really an issue for me anymore – but it certainly was a few years ago.

In fact, my first business, I was so scared to even have a photo of myself on the about page, let alone send an email from my name to my email list. And now look where we are today – my entire business is in my name! 

 

 

1. Remember it’s not about you, it’s about the people you’re helping

 

You have some magic inside you that needs to be shared with the world. And, if you’re playing small and not stepping into the spotlight, you’re limiting the number of people you can impact. 

In some ways, letting your fear of being in the spotlight hold you back from helping people is actually a bit selfish – it’s almost as if you’re prioritising your own comfort over the people you can help. 

Which leads me to the next point….

 

 

2. Shift the focus away from you, to your message

 

Don’t think of it so much as being about you, as it is about the message you need to share with the world. 

Get really clear on your message, as well as who it’s for and who it isn’t for. 

Actually, that’s another point – know who your brand isn’t for and don’t be afraid to repel some people. 

We can so often try to be people pleasers and be everything for everyone, but it’s actually a really good thing to repel some people from our brands.

 

3. Start to embrace feeling uncomfortable, one little bit at a time

 

What’s one tiny thing you could do today that would make you uncomfortable? Maybe it’s showing your face on Instagram Stories. Maybe it’s sharing a photo of yourself on your Instagram account and introducing yourself to your followers? Maybe it’s sending an email to your subscribers and signing off with your name rather than your business name.

Pick one tiny thing to do each day that makes you uncomfortable and start to embrace the feeling of discomfort that shows up.

Last year, I challenged myself to show up on stories every day for 30 days. I showed my face EVERY day, and now I’m no longer afraid of doing that, because it got easier.

Honestly, feeling uncomfortable isn’t something that goes away – but you learn to appreciate the feeling and know that it’s a sign you’re growing. 

 

4. Have a solid plan and know what you need to talk about

 

I think often this fear stems from the worry that we might say something wrong or stuff up.

This is where having a clear plan of what you’re going to say in the lead up to your launch is so important. 

I recently worked with a launch strategy client who was really afraid of owning her message and showing up consistently on social media in the lead up to her launch, but as part of her launch strategy, I created a marketing calendar for her with prompts for all the social media posts she needs to share in the lead up to her launch.

And, she’s been sticking to it so well so far. Because now she knows exactly what she needs to talk about, it removes that fear that she might talk about the wrong thing. 

So, I cannot stress HOW important it is to plan in advance! 

 

5. Look to the root of the fear and put in the work to overcome it

 

Is it impostor syndrome? Or the fear that people will point and laugh? Or some other fear? 

Firstly, realise your fear is legitimate – you don’t need to feel bad for feeling these things. 

But, I do want you to question these fears. And think of a time when you faced the fear and it didn’t go wrong.

For example: Why are you afraid of doing a webinar? Oh because you once messed up on a live webinar and never want to do one again? Okay, but how many webinars did you do where you didn’t mess up? Or how many times have you spoken to a group of people without messing up? At least 10 times? So the likelihood of you stuffing up again is pretty slim. 

Fear is pretty irrational, so I’ve found this way of working through it to be super helpful for me. 

If you’re really struggling with it to the point where it’s holding you back in business, it might be worth hiring a mindset coach and working on it together. 

 

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