You have nothing to fear.

QThere are so many goals I want to achieve, yeti seem to do more talking than acting toward reaching them. What is causing me to procrastinate and stopping me from getting started?

--S. Smith, New Orleans

A It's probably the thing that prevents a lot of people from turning their ideas into reality: fear. Two of the biggest inhibitors are fear of losing total control and fear of not succeeding at all.

"The path of inner excellence asks you to give up a lot. But look at the alternative: What if failure to control the things that happen to you was not the worst possibility?" writes Carol M. Orsborn in her book Inner Excellence at Work: The Path to Meaning, Spirit, and Success (AMACOM, $14.95). "What if the greater tragedy was betrayal of your potential to live life fully" by not attempting to go for your goals?

Anxiety is a normal part of the goal-attainment process. But if you are to reach your objectives, you must find it within yourself to push past that fear and start working toward them anyway. Don't be afraid of what you may not accomplish; if you don't try, you'll certainly never know if you could have.

Mail your self-empowerment questions to In The Know, BLACK ENTERPRISE, 130 Fifth Ave., New York, NY 10011, or send an e-mail to [e-mail].