Finding Courage
I'm currently reading a book by Lee G. Boleman called, "Leading With Soul." Chapter five is my favorite so far, because it makes a reference to the Wizard of Oz. An amazing story about friendship, perseverance, and ambition. "I wanted to find courage -- like the Cowardly Lion in the Wizard of Oz. The Wizard says that everyone is afraid. Courage is the ability to go anyway. It took me a long time, but I'v learned to go on."
That's such a powerful quote, because it speaks to me about the imperfections of courage. It also speaks to me about the purity of courage, and how we as humans, learn from many lessons that we have gone through in our lives.
During my childhood, I would see people with low self-esteem be subjected to being ridiculed and be the target of a good laugh. Often, there would be times when I was the one who was the target of the joke. Needless to say, my self-esteem did not improve during my childhood. Although, I do remember a time when I saw someone my age at my elementary school (I was around 10) crying hysterically. I was somewhat appalled, because no one was paying attention to this kid who was sitting by himself and crying next to the basketball court. I walked over to him and nervously asked what was wrong. The boy told me that he was being made fun of, because he was the only kid in his class where his parents were getting divorced. Not knowing how to react, I just sat next to him and waited with him until the bell rang. It was an awkward moment for me, and because I did not know how to react, I just felt it was best that I sit there with him. A friendship later developed, and his parents did not divorce. Turns out they were just going through a rough patch in their marriage. Although the boy later transferred to another school, I still felt the sense of accomplishment in what I had done. Just sitting there proved to be helpful for the boy in need. The state of courage is in place.
Two years later, I found myself in his shoes. My parents had told me that their marriage was ending and that they were getting a divorce. I knew it was coming, but you really don't know how to interpret anything when you're 12 years old. Later that week there was a project, where we had to turn in a family portrait that we created; a standard piece of construction paper where characters were colored in and labeled. I was the only one in the class that did not turn in the project, thus, it was not posted on the bulletin board. When I later told my classmates that my parents were not together anymore, there was a look of disgust on a few of the faces. Other things transpired after that but, I'm not going to bother you with additional depressing information. Let's just say my courage was hiding.
Years later I started to branch out and learned how to talk to people, but instead of focusing on me, I focused on others. I felt that if I just gave my full attention to others and focused on their problems, I wouldn't have to worry about my problems. Suppressing my emotions was not the key, but hey! I was helping others. Maybe I was doing this out of fear.
I later realized, that suppressing my emotions due to fear was not beneficial for me. I did not want people to view me as someone who was weak and had low self-esteem. I'm not going to lie, this something that I am still working on to this day. However, I have always felt a great sense of joy from others when they come to me and just vent. It can be about anything. But I needed to find the courage in myself to let myself vent too.
I always tell my students that there's 365 days in a year, and you're allowed to be pissed off a few of those days. Just remember to come back and focus on yourself, and be happy. We're human and we all need to be leaders. Leaders where we can learn to communicate with others and empower them, when they are struggling. This is both in the workforce and out of the workforce. Finding courage in yourself, is just as gratifying as helping others find courage within themselves. It's that human connection, where you can totally lose yourself and feel pure happiness.
Being a leader consist of having courage, and realizing that your imperfections can bring you clarity. All we need to do, in our lives, is just have some courage and help others along the way.
Enjoy this video from TedTalks about Leaders by Drew Dudley.
That's such a powerful quote, because it speaks to me about the imperfections of courage. It also speaks to me about the purity of courage, and how we as humans, learn from many lessons that we have gone through in our lives.
During my childhood, I would see people with low self-esteem be subjected to being ridiculed and be the target of a good laugh. Often, there would be times when I was the one who was the target of the joke. Needless to say, my self-esteem did not improve during my childhood. Although, I do remember a time when I saw someone my age at my elementary school (I was around 10) crying hysterically. I was somewhat appalled, because no one was paying attention to this kid who was sitting by himself and crying next to the basketball court. I walked over to him and nervously asked what was wrong. The boy told me that he was being made fun of, because he was the only kid in his class where his parents were getting divorced. Not knowing how to react, I just sat next to him and waited with him until the bell rang. It was an awkward moment for me, and because I did not know how to react, I just felt it was best that I sit there with him. A friendship later developed, and his parents did not divorce. Turns out they were just going through a rough patch in their marriage. Although the boy later transferred to another school, I still felt the sense of accomplishment in what I had done. Just sitting there proved to be helpful for the boy in need. The state of courage is in place.
Two years later, I found myself in his shoes. My parents had told me that their marriage was ending and that they were getting a divorce. I knew it was coming, but you really don't know how to interpret anything when you're 12 years old. Later that week there was a project, where we had to turn in a family portrait that we created; a standard piece of construction paper where characters were colored in and labeled. I was the only one in the class that did not turn in the project, thus, it was not posted on the bulletin board. When I later told my classmates that my parents were not together anymore, there was a look of disgust on a few of the faces. Other things transpired after that but, I'm not going to bother you with additional depressing information. Let's just say my courage was hiding.
Years later I started to branch out and learned how to talk to people, but instead of focusing on me, I focused on others. I felt that if I just gave my full attention to others and focused on their problems, I wouldn't have to worry about my problems. Suppressing my emotions was not the key, but hey! I was helping others. Maybe I was doing this out of fear.
I later realized, that suppressing my emotions due to fear was not beneficial for me. I did not want people to view me as someone who was weak and had low self-esteem. I'm not going to lie, this something that I am still working on to this day. However, I have always felt a great sense of joy from others when they come to me and just vent. It can be about anything. But I needed to find the courage in myself to let myself vent too.
I always tell my students that there's 365 days in a year, and you're allowed to be pissed off a few of those days. Just remember to come back and focus on yourself, and be happy. We're human and we all need to be leaders. Leaders where we can learn to communicate with others and empower them, when they are struggling. This is both in the workforce and out of the workforce. Finding courage in yourself, is just as gratifying as helping others find courage within themselves. It's that human connection, where you can totally lose yourself and feel pure happiness.
Being a leader consist of having courage, and realizing that your imperfections can bring you clarity. All we need to do, in our lives, is just have some courage and help others along the way.
Enjoy this video from TedTalks about Leaders by Drew Dudley.
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