COURAGE & LEADERS
COURAGE
Courageous leaders lead with principles. Without courage they will not make a difference; they won't have the difficult conversations; they won't make the unpopular decisions that leads to change; and they won’t get off the starting block as a leader.
Aristotle called courage the first virtue because it makes all of the other virtues possible. Leadership means making bold and often unpopular decisions. Leadership takes courage - showing up fiercely and completely, bringing your vulnerabilities, imperfections, and inadequacies, but not being driven by them takes courage. And it takes courage, lots of it, to ask for help. All good leaders do not see asking for help as weakness; they see it as a strength.
Courage is neither an intellectual quality nor can it be taught in the classroom; it can only be gained through multiple experiences involving some sort of personal risk. Courage and comfort will never be friends. If you are comfortable, chances are you aren’t learning, growing or forging a new path. Say yes to something that makes you uncomfortable every single day. Courage comes from this.
The Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh once said, “The longest journey you will ever take is the 18 inches from your head to your heart.” - with lots of love and caring - AJ -
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