6 pillars of courage
If you wish to grow, expand, and not feel stuck in any area of your life, you need to flex courage. Nothing is certain in life, and it’s this uncertainty that forces us to show up courageously. We humans struggle with this because we long for certainty and cling to anything that offers it to us.
"Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, 'I will try again tomorrow.'" ― Mary Anne Radmacher
Courage will get you through challenging times, it will help you expand your comfort zone and give you something to celebrate. When we choose to act courageously we’re going against our fear response and our desire for comfort. It is always easier to avoid the tougher option, to stay within your comfort zone, to not see ourselves, to shy away, and to avoid being vulnerable. However, this shrinks you and limits your ability to think and act expansively.
I sat down to contemplate and research key pillars to cultivate and lean into courage, which I’ve summed up below.
6 Key Pillars to Cultivate Courage
Living in alignment to yourself
Core values: understanding your core values and beliefs will help you to get into alignment with yourself and what matters to you the most. Using your values as a guidepost for life gives your life greater meaning and purpose.
Top priorities: Being super clear on what your top priorities are in your current reality will stop you from undermining yourself. It helps you to stop people pleasing, stop you slipping into victimhood or blaming others. It cuts through the nose and helps you take right and aligned action.
Self-discovery
Inner work: Taking ownership and responsibility of yourself takes a huge amount of courage. Continuously questioning and holding space for yourself, your emotional response, thought process and reactions.
Beliefs: Continuously question the story in your mind and challenge your beliefs and where they came from. Deconstructing them to understand them on a deeper level, to then rewire them to empowering beliefs.
Clear communication
Being vulnerable: Is holding your hands up when you’ve gotten it wrong. It’s speaking your truth, honestly and standing up for what you believe. It’s listening to others and showing compassion. It’s allowing yourself to love whole heartedly.
Setting boundaries: Getting clear on your energy and what you need to show up as your best self. Prioritising your well-being so that you can be there for the people you love in your life. When you get clear on this you can set boundaries around whatever it is that is pulling you away from your best self or whatever it is you need that pulls you towards that place.
Vision
Desires: It always interests me how hard we can find it to think about what we desire for our life and what we want to create for our life. We spend so much of our time thinking about what we don’t want, but what do you want? Contemplate this, over and over, as it will shift and change as you do. Having a vision that you are moving towards is so important to give you direction, keep you inspired and not feeling stuck.
Comfort zone: Take small acts of courage as often as possible to expand your comfort zone. These acts of courage can be towards your desires and vision. Overtime you’ll begin to appreciate the feeling of stretching yourself and maybe even love it.
Mindset
Trust: The only thing we can be certain about is that life is uncertain. In the uncertainty of life choose to TRUST. Trusting is the antidote for fear and uncertainty but it takes courage.
Abundance: Appreciate what you have in your life. Choose to see through a lens of abundance rather than lack. Don’t overlook the small things that bring you joy.
Show up for yourself
Daily habits: When you commit to daily habits that serve you, expand you and elevate you in your current reality your future self will reap the benefits.
Momentum: Keep showing up for yourself and stay believing. Keep going no matter how tough the ride is. Seek help and advice if you need it. .
The muscle of courage is one that leads you to greater freedom. Know that your relationship to fear can change and it changes through you relationship to courage.