Launching scares the crap out of me. Here is how I deal with it.

I have a huge fear of launching.

Over the years I have built several software products and written many things. And each time the biggest hurdle is not having an idea or building it or even figuring out how to market it, the biggest challenge is always actually putting it out there. As a result, many of my creations never saw the light of day.

I admire anyone that can create something and put it out there without much trouble. I wish I was that way too.

But in my head, pulling the trigger and launching something into the world is this big scary thing. Even though the entire reason why I created something in the first place is so that it will get out there and people can use it.

Thinking about putting something I created out there immediately makes my heart beat faster. I can feel the anxiety rushing into my head. Not a pleasant sensation, so I try to avoid thinking about it.

But of course, the thought can’t be avoided because it’s part of the larger plan. There is no point in spending months building something when it never gets used by others.

Whenever I feel uncomfortable I have the same reaction: I overthink. I try to make the perfect plan and think about every little detail. Compulsively analyzing something from every angle is my safety blanket. My subconscious mind seems to believe that just by thinking hard enough and making the perfect plan I can avoid all negative consequences.

Well, my subconscious is obviously wrong. All that overthinking leads to is delay. The perfect plan never materializes. There is always more to consider. And I should probably just go over everything again. It never ends.

The rational part of me is painfully aware of the futility of this overthinking and needless delay. And now it’s not just my subconscious animal brain that has anxiety but my rational mind starts panicking too, because it realizes that if I don’t get a handle on this darn overthinking and just launch, we are screwed anyway. Goodbye dreams.

Last year I launched Amazing Marvin. It was difficult. But I did it. And boy am I glad I did.

Not coincidentally, Marvin is a productivity tool that is designed to help people with procrastination. And anxiety and overthinking are often root causes of procrastination.

I am endlessly fascinated by human psychology. I can’t imagine anything more exciting than trying to find solutions to all the problems this weird brain of ours causes. And I can’t imagine anything more fulfilling than helping others with their weird brain.

This passion certainly helped with finally pulling the trigger.

The key is to always have thoughts inspired by this passion top of mind. Anxiety and fear has a way of taking over our entire body and thought processes. That is part of why it is so difficult to override.

I try to think every day about why I do what I do and why it is so important to get this out there. It’s not just about thinking a thought, but thinking about it intensely and focused enough so that it actually creates an emotional response. You want to FEEL the drive and urgency to get something out there.

Another strategy that helps me is all about rationalization. It makes use of my overthinking and love for analyzing the crap out of situations, but to the opposite effect. I think about the consequences of never launching. I think about all the reasons I might be afraid and then find reasons of why I don’t actually have to be afraid of all that. Good thing our fears (especially launch fears!) are mostly irrational. Once you dissect the fear it’s really easy to see that there is no reason to be afraid.

And finally, the last strategy is to calm that damn sympathetic nervous system that is causing all that anxiety and blockage. I make sure to take good care of my body, by exercising daily (even if it is just 10min), eating well, having a solid sleep schedule and actively doing something to calm my body every day (meditation, muscle relaxation or yoga).

I might have launched Marvin, but the crappy thing is that every marketing strategy, every outreach, every blog post is basically a launch. It requires me to put something out there… 😱

And yet, even though I know how unhelpful, even harmful and irrational this behavior is, I can’t just change by willing it. I have to work on it daily. In many ways. Most importantly by practicing doing things despite feeling intense resistance.

That’s why I am publishing this post without going back to edit it or overthink the sh*it out of it. Here we go.

Ahh, the pleasures of being a human.