In this workshop, we will explore how fear of failure can be seen as the dark side of perfectionism, leading to procrastination and a kind of immobilisation. Although these behaviours are often adopted as a way of protecting the individual, they can act as a brake on spontaneity, creativity, and self-worth. At its root, fear of failing can be seen as a fear of being unwanted and unloved—an attempt to please those around us in order to keep their affection.
Having unpacked what constitutes fear of failure, we will explore how we view failure itself and consider how our attitude towards it can in fact determine the experience of it. We’ll look at what it means to grow, and how mistakes and errors are an inevitable part of our learning process. As human beings, we all make mistakes and that in itself can be a source of understanding and compassion, rather than shame and distress. The three elements of self compassion—self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness—have a practical relevance here and we will learn some practices to help integrate the ideas in daily life.
This two-hour workshop will focus on practical strategies you can use with clients. It will include video clips, exercises, discussion, and exchange. Participants will receive a PDF workbook with quotes and exercises.
Learning Objective Participants Can Expect From This Event
- To explore fear of failure from different perspectives.
- To appreciate the underlying causes of a client having this fear.
- To demonstrate the freedom available in overcoming this fear.
Who is This Workshop Appropriate For?
- This workshop is for any colleagues working with clients for whom fear of failure, procrastination, or perfectionism is an issue.
How May This Workshop Impact Your Practice?
- This workshop will help practitioners to understand what constitutes fear of failure and related attitudes. Learning techniques to work on transforming these attitudes will help practitioners be better equipped to support clients, while at the same time, addressing their own concerns around failure.
Course Content
Presenter
Maureen is the founding director of Awareness in Action, an organization dedicated supporting people to make sustainable wellbeing part of their lives—through developing clarity, connection and openness.
Drawing on more than thirty years of experience as a professional educator, senior manager in a non-profit organization, an entrepreneur and as an experienced practitioner of Buddhist meditation, she leads Awareness in Action workshops and training programs in the UK and Europe.
Her new book, The Stress Workbook is a groundbreaking effort that brings together the best of modern science and the wisdom of the world’s ancient contemplative traditions into a practical manual for thriving in today’s fast-paced world. Although born in London, UK love took Maureen to Amsterdam, The Netherlands where she lives with her husband.
