Courage
Courage
"The 1st step of being courageous is being willing to look foolish" James Clear.
Courage and fear go hand in hand. I don't think you can have one without the other.
What are we afraid of? James Clear, in his quote above, is the fear of looking foolish. That is our Ego talking. We know that doesn't end well. Then there is the fear of physical harm. That is always a possibility depending on the situation that you are faced with. Though on an everyday basis, we are more likely to be batting our Egos. There is a saying that the expectation of fear is worse than the actual act. Our imaginations make it so much worse than it really is.
So what separates those people with courage and those without. More importantly, how can one without courage obtain it? What actions need to be performed so that a once fearful person is now courageous.
Confidence is one thing that courageous people have. So how do I build confidence? One way is by taking small actions and being successful. Success breeds confidence. So maybe that is one thing that can be done. That doesn't mean that the fear goes away. It just means that you have enough experiences to know that you are not going to die. You're not going to be that embarrassed or feel foolish that it would prevent you from trying something new. Something where the result is uncertain. After all, we all suck before we are good at anything. The interesting thing is that people who see you fail or fall on your face respect you more. They know that you went out on that ledge. That you took a risk. That you are going after something that is not yet obtainable. That is what being in the game is all about. What was it that Roosevelt said,
"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat."
So do something each day that is a little bit scary. Take that one baby step and build your confidence which will turn you into the roaring courageous lion. After all, it's all about being in the arena.
