Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says I’ll try again tomorrow.
— Mary Anne Radmacher
Last week I wrote about how small acts of kindness can help us grow our courage. By caring for another through small acts, we build our inner resources. And that allows us to help others and ourselves.
When we reflect on times we did act with courage in the past, we can discover how we got through and how we felt. We can then imagine being courageous again.
For all of the journaling prompts below, you get to define what courage means to you — I’m always inspired by the research of sociologist Brené Brown. She tells us the courage is borne out of vulnerability, not strength, that courageous people are “wholehearted.”
When in your life have you been courageous in small and big ways? Make a list and notice what you did, how it felt and what you learned. When you need to tap into courage, revisit this list to remind you that you can be courageous.
Have there been times in your life when you’ve needed to be courageous? Did these require physical or moral courage or something else like deep caring? Write about one of those times: what was the situation and what did you do?
The root cour means “of the heart”. Words for “heart” also commonly are metaphors for inner strength. Where do you think courage comes from? How do you express courage?
Do you have role models for how to be courageous?
I’d love to journal together with you on the topic of courage and how positive attributes in ourselves, like caring and generosity, help us be courageous. Please join me June 25 for a two hour workshop on Courage. Spots are limited as I want to be able to give each participant personal support. You can sign up HERE.
Wishing you well.
Melanie
P.S. Want to start journaling sooner, join me TOMORROW for a free half-hour webinar on journaling for resilience. Sign up here.