Here’s the truth:

The person being courageous usually doesn’t know it at the time.

I’ll say that again — because yes, I mean you.

The person who is being courageous rarely recognizes it in the moment.

It’s obvious to everyone watching from the outside.

But not to them.

Why?

First, they’re too busy feeling the fear.

Courage isn’t the absence of fear. It’s feeling the fear and moving forward in spite of it because something matters more.

They’re nervous.
They’re uncertain.
Their heart is pounding.

And they move anyway.

Second, many of us carry a narrow, outdated image of what courage looks like.

We imagine it belongs to someone else.

The hero.
The activist.
The firefighter.
The person who jumps out of airplanes.

But courage comes in all shapes and sizes.

Marianne Radmacher wrote:

“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day that says, ‘I’ll try again tomorrow.'”

Courage can look like running toward danger.

It can also look like saying no when it would be easier to comply.

Rosa Parks spoke one word — “No.”
And that vulnerable, courageous act set a chain of events in motion that changed history.

Courage can look like:

Saying yes when your voice is shaking.
Setting a boundary.
Challenging a powerful leader.
Standing naked — literally or metaphorically — before a room full of people.
Opening your heart and saying, “I love you.”

To me, that last one may be the most courageous of all.

So let me ask you:

If courage means feeling nervous or afraid or hesitant — but knowing somewhere deep down that what you’re doing is right…

What does courage mean to you?

And what is the most courageous way you can use your voice right now?

Today.
This week.
This year.

Courage is rarely loud.

Often, it’s simply present.

And more often than not, you’re already living it — whether you realize it or not.

With passion & love,
Lauri