If You're Not Terrified, You're Doing it Wrong

*"Fear and uncertainty are at an all time high right now among Founders, but this what we are built for. In the most uncertain times we build our greatest dreams. We plow forward when everyone else runs away. Stand strong, friends, we're gonna get through this together."

— Wil Schroter*

There’s a funny thing about building a startup: if it doesn’t scare the hell out of you, you’re probably not building it right.

Founders like to dream big, talk big, and pitch big. But behind every pitch deck and inspirational LinkedIn post is a cold, shaky hand wondering if this is the moment everything falls apart. That’s not weakness — that’s the real cost of greatness.

Even small outcomes can require big risks, and those don't come with a safety net. They come with sleepless nights, maxed-out credit cards, and the pit in your stomach that says, “What if I just screwed up everything?” That feeling is the price of admission for a startup.

Fear is a Feature, Not a Flaw

We tend to talk about fear like it’s something to be overcome. But in startups, fear is a signal. It tells us we’re entering uncharted territory. It means we’re making decisions that matter—ones that have real consequences and real stakes. If it doesn’t scare us at least a little, it probably isn’t worth doing.

Founders are often forced to make terrifying bets: quitting a stable job, investing their life savings, asking friends and family for money, or committing years to something with no guaranteed return. That’s not optional—that’s the blueprint. It’s the “price of Founder freedom.” We get to choose our own path, but in exchange, we risk everything from our finances to our sanity.

That fear—the one that has us staring at the ceiling at 3 a.m.—isn’t just normal. It’s essential. It means we care deeply about what we’re doing. It means we know what’s on the line. And most importantly, it means we’re not phoning it in. We’re going all in, and that’s what it takes to do something that actually matters.

Playing It Safe is the Riskiest Move of All

We’ve all been told that taking risks is dangerous. But in startup life, not taking risks is the fastest way to guarantee mediocrity. Every startup that ever made a dent in the universe got there by leaping off a cliff with nothing but belief and duct tape holding things together.

Founders don’t get rewarded for caution—they get rewarded for courage.

Playing it safe might keep the lights on for a while, but it will never get you to that breakout moment. And here’s the kicker: those breakout moments only come after you've risked everything to make them happen. You don’t get to disrupt industries or build iconic companies by dipping your toe in. You have to cannonball into the deep end.

Of course, that doesn’t mean being reckless. Smart risk-taking means understanding that there will be fear, and still choosing to move forward. It means backing your intuition, even when the data is inconclusive. It means understanding that betting on yourself is the only bet you truly control. Every great Founder has done this. None of them had certainty—they just had conviction.

Fear as Fuel

There’s a secret most Founders don’t talk about enough: fear can be your rocket fuel. When channeled correctly, anxiety turns into intensity. Doubt becomes drive. Panic sharpens focus. Fear is what keeps us honest—it reminds us that failure is not only possible, but probable. That tension is what forces us to be better, faster, sharper.

When used correctly, fear makes us prepare harder for the pitch. It makes us triple-check the product. It keeps us from mailing it in when we’re exhausted. Fear, in this context, becomes the sharp edge that carves the best version of ourselves out of the chaos. That’s the real alchemy of startup life—taking something painful and turning it into momentum.

So next time you feel that knot in your stomach, don’t run from it. Lean into it. It means you’re pushing beyond what you’ve done before. It means you're building something real.

No Comfort, No Problem

Comfort is the currency of a life half-lived. And if you signed up for this journey, odds are you didn’t do it for comfort. You did it because there’s something inside you that has to build, has to risk, has to try. That same force that keeps you awake at night also propels you toward your best outcomes.

If you’re not terrified, you’re not risking enough. And if you’re not risking enough, you’re not going to change anything—not your life, not your startup, not the world.

So go ahead—bet the farm. Take the leap. Be terrified.

You’re doing it right.