Courage is something you choose, not something you have

 

“He had no courage.”

“She had the courage to leave him.”

“I had the courage to ask for a raise.”

“He didn’t have the guts to speak up.”

 

All these statements are false.

 

When we speak about courage in this manner, we hide from the fact that courage is not something we have or don’t have. It is false and inaccurate to say that someone has or doesn’t have courage, that someone has or doesn’t have guts.

 

The option to choose courage is always available to you

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We choose courage. Courage is a choice in the moment. It is a creation of the human spirit.

 

• It is that moment at the end of the diving board when we choose to jump.

• It is that moment during the meeting with our boss when we choose to ask for raise.

• It is that moment after something has been requested of us when we choose to say “no.”

• It is that moment during a conversation with an attractive person when we choose to ask him or her for a date.

• It is that moment after considering a new project when we choose to go for it.

 

Courage is not something that can be stored or built up

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As you step into the same fearful action, again and again, the fear that you feel in taking that action will diminish, and therefore the amount of courage required to take the action will also diminish.

 

Your opportunity to choose courage or not now is always fresh and new

 

Because courage is a choice in the moment, How much courage you chose yesterday has no causal connection with how much courage you will choose today.

 

The opposite is also true. This is the good news. How much courage you did not choose yesterday has no connection with how much courage you could or will choose today.

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Always a never-ending fresh start ahead

 

It is all a choice, your choice, for every moment in your life.

 

I invite you to create clarity in your speaking and listening by always putting the words “choose” or “did not choose” before the word “courage.” Speaking clearly and accurately is the first step and often the only step needed in order for your life to change.

 

Notice the new opening this provides to you in living the life you really want.