recently had the chance to sit down with Dr. Joe Serio. He is most known for his work investigating the Russian mafia as the Director of the Moscow office of the world’s leading corporate investigation and business intelligence firm. Dr. Joe Serio does Law Enforcement Development Training and wrote books on time management, finding what’s important, overcoming fear, and public speaking.

How do you define fear?

Fear is the gap between expectation: What I want to have happen and what I think will happen. We fill the gap with “I can’t do it.” “What if I’m not good enough?” Fear keeps up from going after the vision we have in our head. The number one reason businesses fail is because of fear.

In your book Overcoming Fear, you say the blame game can take many forms. Can you elaborate on that?

We think other people are responsible for our lives. We think if our parents were richer we wouldn’t be in the situation we’re in. If my wife or husband wasn’t such a nag, then I wouldn’t have gotten a divorce. However, I’m the only one responsible for my life. From the choices I make to the responses I make to what happens around me is what determines my success.  Do you have a successful mindset? Do you believe the story in your mind to be true? The answer to that last question is yes, but what is that story?

If you believe you can be successful, then you can be successful. If you don’t, then you can’t. But we can’t control the environment. What do you think about that?