• Tweet
• Sharebar

• Tweet

Courage is doing what you’re afraid to do.  There can be no courage unless you’re scared.  ~Edward Vernon Rickenbacker

What is courage?

I have been thinking about this little word a lot lately; the bridging point between intention and execution.

When I tell my friends tales of my travels: America x2, Australia x2, New Zealand, Thailand x3 , Cambodia, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia x2, Chile, India x3, Turkey x8, Italy, Greece, Spain x2 , Sweden, Morocco x2 , France, Germany, Prague, Barbados, Ibiza and a few places I can’t remember; sometimes…. I know I bore them.

Other times, I see their eyes full of wonder as they as ask me  “how, why, don’t you get lonely?”  often finishing off with… “you’re so brave,  I could never do that”.

I’m always blown away by the fact that they think all this travel is brave, and doubt whether they too could do it?

The thought of travel as a courageous act has never occurred to me. I know a solo, bald-head, black women is a rarity, novelty and constant source of amusement in some of the places that I rock up in. But very rarely does it feel like I am attempting something brave, courageous or unusual.

The amount of solo wo/men, I meet doing similar journeys along the way, confirms to me that I am not particularly brave in being here, just incredibly fortunate.

I am following the desires of my heart and these are the spots I end up in.

Except, when I think about it, sometimes it takes courage just to go out into the scorching heat of the street each day: to be laughed at, ripped off, ignored and occasionally physically assaulted. Sometimes, returning to the fan assisted comfort of my room feels like a luxury as I cry hot tears of frustration and irritation. Rajasthan in India comes to mind when I think of the most overwhelming, starry, spit hocking, bottom touching, bosom groping place  - I have visited in the world.

My point is, putting myself out there like that does not take courage for me. I do it because I want to, although it’s scary and overwhelming and possibly a little dangerous.

Wholly crap…WTF…I feel sick

Now getting up and opening my mouth to sing in front of even just 4 people, is a whole different story. I get heart palpitations, memory loss, sweats, the lot. Except… because I love singing so much, every time I’m offered the mike as I’ve been on 3 occasions since arriving in Bali. I’ve looked fear dead in the eye, grabbed the mike with a shaking hand and warbled my way through until my fear died and I sang with my whole heart.

I’m convinced there is healing in those humble, joyful moments, where you feel the fear and do it anyway.

This for me, is an act of courage.

So where does confidence stop and courage start?

I have a theory that courage is: not the act of doing ‘the thing’ that scares you; rather, it’s the moment just before you execute the thing that you fear, having made the decision ,that nothing will stop you.

The situations in which we will need a double dose of courage, and not the Dutch kind –  are limitless.

They could be as simple as going for a medical to check that lump you have been ignoring; telling the person you share a home and bed with you know longer wish to do that, or, asking your boss to finally be paid what your worth.

It could be that bungee jump that has your name on it; finally putting down the cigarettes and other gaps fillers you have used to self-medicate for so long, or, calling your daughter to finally apologise for all those years you were a crap parent.

The need for courage is not defined by the size of the obstacle to be overcome, more by the spirit of fear and immobility the thought of facing that obstacle, places within you.

In every place you feel fear; you will need a measure of courage if you want to overcome it and live in love…

So what are the places that scare you?

The things that are confined to the pile marked: maybe, someday, never, because somewhere deep down you fundamentally lack the courage it takes to make it happen.

Where ever that pile lies, is surely the saddest spot in the house?

It’s easy to be a pussy cat meowing our way through life, never using up our nine lives. But the courage to be a lion, a tigress, a world shaker and a history maker..now that’s hard.

Do YOU have that kind of courage?

• What does courage mean to you
• How do you flex your courage muscle to show up with integrity in your life
• What things have you yet to achieve because you’ve not had the courage?

I hope you’ll come and share your experiences with honesty and courage in the comments, and if you missed my 3-part, life changing Integrity Series, Pt1, pt2 & pt3, can all be found here.

Image credit

Why not subscribe? You know you don't want to miss out on this good stuff. Choose RSS feed or via email.

Tagged as: lifestyle design, lifestyle improvement, Personal development, self-actualization