Femi LazarusCEO at Femi Lazarus Consulting

There are times certain rooms may intimidate you. Still, it is better to try and fail...

18 Apr 2026 · 3 min

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2:31

In this short podcast excerpt, Speaker A and Speaker B discuss the common experience of feeling scared or unworthy when entering high‑impact or intimidating environments—whether a conference room, a stage, or a gathering of accomplished peers. Speaker B describes the internal dialogue of imposter syndrome (questions of worthiness, ability to articulate, and fear of judgment) and emphasizes that fear should not stop action. They argue that a mindset shift—grounded in a clear sense of identity, purpose, and self‑acceptance—enables one to push through anxiety. The conversation highlights that everyone, even seasoned speakers, feels nervous, but the key is to let the feeling either overwhelm you or motivate you to act. The preferred approach is to “try and fail” rather than avoid the opportunity altogether. The segment ends with a brief promo from Speaker C for the Declassified Podcast.

You're an high-impact person. Have you ever been scared of entering into certain rooms?
Huh? Every day. What? Every day. Every day? Every day. But that's what— that's why personal development is important.
So there are places you find yourself, you get scared of entering?
You get scared. You're like, am I even worthy? Should I be here? Can I articulate myself in a way that I should? But it doesn't stop me.
Really?
It does not. It scares me, but it can't stop me. How do you push it? You have to push, and that's, that's why we talk about mindset shift.
Yeah.
When you know your identity and know that you're enough.
Yes.
And know that you are on a mission, you know your purpose. Yes. Right? You enter a place and you're just like, "Oh, this seems daunting." Yes. "This is only men," or, "These people feel so much more accomplished." They're probably eyeing you and thinking the same thing. Definitely. They're probably looking at you thinking, "Oh, you know, we saw her here and we saw her there, and this is her topic of strength, and you know, maybe we cannot compare." So how do you— how would you prevent yourself from even trying? What would you tell yourself when you come— when you come home? That I didn't give myself that opportunity? Wow. That I got into the room but I was too scared because I felt like I wasn't worthy? It's a real thing.
I'm not sure you understand how liberating this sounds. The fact that every once in a while, every now And you are fierce too.
Everybody, I am sure, everybody, everybody. And there isn't a time when I go and stand on stage to make a speech that I am— I don't, you know, I don't feel nervous.
And I've watched many of your videos I saw online. I can't see that.
You can't see, but, but you speak to people and everybody has it. The difference is allowing it to, you know, overwhelm you or minimize you or stop you, or pushing past it and doing it anyway. It's better for you to try and fail than not to have tried at all.
Declassified Podcast is now streaming on YouTube and Spotify.