We all have fears, and unfortunately as we grow older, sometimes our fears increase. What are you afraid of? Perhaps it’s failure, snakes, spiders or the dentist. Maybe you are afraid of being alone or of crowds. I know someone who is afraid of balloons and library books. Most of our fears are unfounded; they are something we make up with little basis in reality.
How do you conquer your fears? With Courage!
Do you have courage? What is courage? How do you get it? Why do you want it? What do you do with it once you have it?
According to the dictionary, courage is ‘the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery. ‘
So Courage is also Bravery! Ah Ha!
Remember the Cowardly Lion in The Wizard of Oz? The concept completely overturned the typical belief that lions are brave. That unique and subtle message teaches us that no matter how great someone is, no matter how fearful they appear to be, they too are bound to have fear. Each one of us has our own set of fears that stop us from attaining our true potential.
Who are the most courageous, brave people you know? Children! They have no fear. That is the way all of us were born; fearless. Kids aren’t afraid of new things, of new adventures, of getting hurt, of trying new things. They pick up snakes and bugs, eat mud and jump over fences. Why? Because they are fearless super heroes with courage to spare!
Where is the courageous, fearless, brave child within you? We are conditioned as we get older to be afraid. We lose our bravery as we mature. Well intentioned adults, parents and friends sneak fear into our minds. They listen to our ideas and say ‘are you sure you want to do that? Is that really a good idea?’ They plant the seed that failing is, well, failing instead of an opportunity to learn and grow.
We allow our fear and other people’s doubts to interfere with what we want to do. You are having friends over for dinner and you want to try a new recipe, but what if it doesn’t turn out? You want to plant a rose bush, but what if it dies? You want to ask someone out on a date, but what if they say no? You want to start a new business, but what if it fails?
What if, what if, what if….
Yes, anytime you do something or start something you have to accept that it might not turn out as you had expected or hoped. For the most part there are few things that would be deadly if they didn’t turn out exactly as you had planned. If you job is to disarm a bomb and you make a mistake, OK, not good. If you go sky diving and forget to put on your parachute, OK, you are probably going to have a bad day! We spend too much time worrying about extreme examples such as these and it causes us to be fearful, to lack courage.
Henry Ford said “whether you think you can or think you can’t, you’re probably right.”
So what is it you want to do? Go for a new job? Ask someone out? Start a new business? Be more of an extravert? What do you need courage to try? Where does the courage come from?
Courage comes from within. You were born with it and you still have it. Self doubt is to courage what dust is to your coffee table. Sometimes it covers up the shine and the beauty. You just need to get a dust cloth and wipe it off!
Did the Cowardly Lion have to go all the way to OZ just to get his courage? Of course not; he had it within him all along, he just didn’t recognize it. You have the courage within you; do you recognize it?
Mary Anne Radmacher-Hershey said “Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says… I’ll try again tomorrow.”
Don’t be afraid, don’t doubt yourself, have courage, go forth and conquer your dreams and fulfill your potential and your destiny!
