Cultivating Courage & Overcoming Fears As A Thought Leader or Solopreneur
- Erin Ratliff
- 6 days ago
- 6 min read
“Feel the fear and do it anyway.”
Susan Jeffers
For most of my career, I was terrified of success — not only because I feared failure, but because success meant being fully seen and percieved. It meant being held responsible for my words, my actions, and everything I stood for.
So I stayed small. I hid behind perfectionism — editing, polishing, and overthinking until my true voice was buried beneath layers of control.
But here’s what I’ve learned: you'll never really feel prepared at something you've never done before. Being ready is a myth. So, in the beginning it's really about starting, sucking, figuring it out and then slowly getting better. It's about taking the leap anyway, despite all odds.
“Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage.”
Dale Carnegie
Claiming Your Desire
No matter what it is - success, love, recognition, fulfillment, money - You can’t manifset, build, attract, receive or create what you truly desire by hding it from the world, without openly wanting it first.
To want something deeply is to expose your heart. It’s to admit, “This matters to me. I want this” And that’s vulnerable — because once you show your desire, you risk disappointment, rejection, or judgment.
To be seen in your desire is an act of courage and alignment. It’s what opens the door for that desire to meet you halfway.
"You can't have what you want without first risking the vulnerability of being seen in your desire."
Katerina Eleftheriou
"I am not afraid. I was born to do this."
Joan of Arc
The Uncertain Path
Imagine you’re floating down a wide, steady river — surrounded by millions of others. The current is predictable, the path clear. Everyone’s following the same route: steady job, familiar routines, a life that makes sense on paper. It’s comfortable. It’s safe.
But every now and then, you notice narrow tributaries branching off — quiet, wild, unknown. Few people take them. You tell yourself the main current is fine, that safety is smart. And yet, something restless stirs inside you. You start wondering, What if there’s more for me?
One day, curiosity wins. You paddle toward the edge, heart pounding, and peel away into your own channel.
Welcome to Entrepreneurship.
There is no way around it: The moment you take control of your life and decide to stop drifting and start steering is going to feel uncomfortable and scary. But keep going.
Breaking off on your own is where you finally discover what you’re made of, what you stand for, why you're here, and who you're truly here to serve. Lean into uncertainty. It's required for magic to unfold.
"Uncertainty is where possibility lives. Uncertainty is where freedom lives. Uncertainty is where hope lives."
Nicola Jane Hobbs
"The greatest rewards in life go to those who can show up every single day even when the rewards are uncertain. The ones who can tolerate the most uncertainty are the ones who will eventually win."
Sahil Bloom
The Myth of “Perfect Visibility”
In the beginning it's normal to overcomplicate and overthink your marketing and communications.
Polishing, censoring, diluting, tweaking, refining and expirementing with your prices, your offers, your voice, your caption — until you can’t even remember what you were trying to say in the first place.
Sometimes we say we want to be seen, but often what we really mean is: “I want to be seen on my terms, under very specific conditions.”
And it makes sense — this is your brand, your livelihood, your heart out in the open. But at some point, that sense of control and perfectionism is less about strategy and more about self-sabotage.
Silencing yourself won’t save you from judgment. Trying to please everyone won’t make you likable. Avoiding conflict won’t make you a leader.
“Greatness is not achieved when a great result is reached, but long before that. It happens in an instant, the moment you choose to do the things you need to do to be great.” 
Brian P Moran
Redefining Success
New definition of success: Visibility.
But more than that: it's Visibility + Authenticity.
Being a Thought Leader doesn’t mean getting everything right — it means showing up even though you might get it wrong. You realize that you may be misunderstood but decide that you're going to say the thing anyway.
True leadership — and true fulfillment — begin when you stop performing and start living from your core. It’s about...
letting go of the endless editing and overthinking
embodying authenticity by showing up with integrity, humility, and presence.
living your truth and your values with clear boundaries and messages
trusting that the people who need your work will feel it, even if others don’t.
The leaders who change industries, start movements, and build deep community aren’t universally liked by everyone, and that's ok. The important part is that they are deeply valued by the people their work is meant for.
"If you're not ready to be misunderstood, you're not ready to lead."
Lois Mac
“Stop being afraid of what could go wrong, and start being excited about what could go right.”
Tony Robbins
Proof of Concept
Ever noticed how every time you take action and see positive results, your belief in yourself gets stronger?
When you do something new and succeed — or even just survive it — your brain and body has now gathered tangible proof and evidence that you can do hard things. This builds vital confidence, or self-efficacy, needed to continue trying and doing.
Self-efficacy is context-specific confidence that shapes how you approach goals, challenges, and setbacks. It is your inner belief in your ability to handle or succeed in specific situations or accomplish a task
The four experiences that build self-efficacy longterm:
Mastery experience – First-hand experience actually doing something successfully
Vicarious experience – seeing someone similar to you succeed.
Social persuasion – encouragement and feedback from others.
Physiological states – how your body feels (calm vs. anxious)
People with high self-efficacy tend to see difficult tasks as challenges, not threats. They stay motivated when things get hard and recover quickly when they fall down. This is how we learn and grow effectively. This is how we build resilience.
The SoulPrenuer's Path
When you truly are living in alignment and authenticity (and not chasing approval or acceptance), these affirmations feel true:
I am free from the past and future. I am not bound by old stories, past traumas or future fears. Change and healing happens in the present moment — through conscious decisions and actions made today.
I have the courage to be disliked. Real happiness comes from living in alignment with my truth, even when it challenges expectations.
"The only way to find happiness is to let go of the need for approval from others. To be disliked is a sign of growth, as it means you are living authentically and not compromising your true self for others."
Kishimi & Koga
My worth is separate myself from my work. Peace comes from knowing what’s yours to carry — and what’s not. I focus on my responsibilities and release the need to control how others respond to me.
I am contributing to the collective. Fulfillment arises not from competing, but from collaborating and connection. When I use my gifts to uplift others, I naturally create purpose, belonging, and community.
The outcome is out of my control. I trust my capacity to meet whatever comes my way. I am safe and protected by the wisdom I hold from all of my life experience up to this point. I am only given what Spirit and Source know I can handle.
“One can choose to go back toward safety or forward toward growth. Growth must be chosen again and again; fear must be overcome again and again.”
Abraham Maslow
Do It Scared
You don’t need permission.You don’t need perfect, polished phrasing.You simply need your vision and the courage to chase it. Then after that, Confidence comes.
This is how we rewire old habits. These small but transformative choices are how we show our nervous system safety—because healing doesn’t come from what we know intellectually in our brains, it comes from what we embody and practice in our bodies.
Every time you choose to go out of your comfort zone, you’re sending your body a powerful signal: I am safe, even when things are challenging or difficult.
"It takes a certain kind of madness to go all in. Not talent. Not luck. Madness. Because most people need a safety net. A backup plan. A way out. But the ones who actually make something of themselves? They burn the boats. Not because it’s smart, but because they have to see what they’re capable of. Going all in doesn’t make sense. It’s not logical. It’s not safe. It’s a full-body yes in a world that worships hesitation. But 80% in only gets you 20% back, whilst 100% in gets you 1000% back. Because when you commit like that - when you bet on yourself with no exit strategy- you’ve no choice but to start playing a different game. You think clearer. You move faster. You become the person who figures it out. So if you’re one of the few who are mad enough, go all in. Because the cost of not doing it is living with the question: “What if I had?” And that question? It will haunt you far more than failure ever could."
Ross Harkness
Erin Ratliff is a holistic business coach and consultant specializing in organic growth + visibility for heart-led soul-preneurs and energy-sensitive self-starters in pursuit of personal and planetary healing.
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