Sunday, July 14, 2013

Have you the courage of your convictions?

Having the courage of your convictions .... (def.) saying or doing what (you think) is right even when others disagree

We set out on our goals and missions with great ideas and visions. Few of us end up reaching our destination as we end up being waylaid by naysayers, distractors and obstacles. Having the courage of our convictions is what leads us through. The ingredients necessary to build this courage is passion, determination and perseverance.

Courage, or the lack of it, is built and demonstrated in small, daily actions. There is no need for a big show of 'Joan of Arc'-ish behavior to display courage. Believing in what is right as per you and staying on the course to see it happen takes a lot of small steps.

The courage of your convictions is very personal to 'you' and hence is uniquely interpreted by each one differently. The added emphasis with parenthesis above is meant to focus on 'what you think' is right. There is no one definition of what is right and what is wrong. One man's meat is another man's poison. Hence one's belief of right and wrong depends completely on their own moral upbringing, childhood experiences and environmental circumstances of tolerance and justice.

I am not advocating sticking to one's dogmatic beliefs and not tempering our views of right and wrong as our experiences mature. Our beliefs and thoughts are dynamic and our actions would be remodeled as we uncover new experiences and beliefs.

Speaking is one of the biggest fears people face. Speaking up - even more so. People think they are avoiding trouble by falling in line. We are only inviting greater problems by not speaking up at the appropriate time. If what we are doing does not fit in with the core values of who we are, then this inner conflict will surface in some form or other.

Having done the right thing would rather put us at peace with ourselves first, put a sense of purpose in what we are doing and make us succeed in much larger proportions.