I want to help you understand how to build up the courage you need to really go for the things that you want in your life. I want you to be able to be confident in knowing that you can do anything you put your mind to. Having the courage to go for it ultimately means that you are willing to take calculated risks even when you don’t know what the outcomes are going to be. You’re going to go for it because it’s what you believe is the right thing for you to do. It is something you feel you need to do.
Once you learn the things you need to know about how to develop courage, you can use this in all areas of your life. It doesn’t matter if is about playing a sport, an instrument, school, or work. Courage is a crucial aspect of your creative life when it comes to art, ideas, creations, or inventions. Anything that you are working on, or working towards, that you’re just unsure of and you may have some self-doubt. You may not believe that you can do it, or you may not have the confidence.
Believe in yourself
Develop more knowledge about the subject you’re working on. You may not believe you know enough, or you may not understand enough about it to be confident. Once you develop that confidence, you will have the courage to go for it to really take the action. Believe in yourself and be willing to be seen for who you are because you are unique, and so are your gifts and talents. Courage is what’s going to give you the ability to just go for it regardless of what people are going to think or say about what you do.
Regardless of what people might be thinking about you, your job is to just do what you believe is right for you. Don’t worry about what other people may or may not think about it. People will always have their opinions, that shouldn’t affect whether or not you do something. When you have courage and you’re putting yourself out there, you may feel vulnerable, you may feel exposed, you may feel like people are going to see a side of you that they’ve never seen before. You may be worried about what that might look like to other people.
Understand that to be genuinely happy, you’re going to have to take some calculated risks and be willing to give yourself a chance at making your dreams a reality. Think about all the different musicians and actors and actresses who are on television every day doing things that are uncomfortable for them. They are doing these things for other people’s entertainment, and for other people’s pleasure. To share their gifts and talents and there are always going to be some people who don’t like that actor or actress or musician. When they get criticized, they don’t quit. Some people have fans, and some people have people who don’t like them. You can’t worry about who’s going to like or dislike what it is you do.
Create the things that will bring you joy
Your job is to be yourself, be as prepared as possible, and go for it. Plan for what you’re going to do and then you make your move. It’s okay to make mistakes, it’s okay to not be perfect. Nobody is perfect. Being yourself means having a human experience, it means doing what you desire to do and what is going to make you happy. People make mistakes every day and although you may not always see them, they are happening. When it comes to making a movie, these actors and actresses are not perfect. It takes many tries to get a scene right. You may not see it because it gets edited out, but at the end of the movie if you see the bloopers you’ll see where people made mistakes.
Some of these people are making fools of themselves in some people’s eyes, but it doesn’t stop them. When you think about it, in the world of acting people are making a lot of money to embarrass themselves or to get criticized. There are artists who create artwork whether it be a painting or any other type of art, where they have people who love it, and they have people who hate it. People not liking what they create doesn’t stop them from making their art. That is courage.
Courage is being willing to do what makes you happy regardless of what other people are going to think about it. Your journey begins by understanding where you are, what challenges you face, where you want to go, and how to get there. So, if you feel like you don’t have the courage to step out into the world to let people see you, there are ways you can develop this. Start by practicing and developing your talents and skills. You can record yourself if it’s a thing where you’re talking, presenting information, or making music. You can record yourself and watch it back to see where your mistakes are and then you can fix them.
You are unique in your own ways
You can rehearse just like actors rehearse their lines. As you become better, you will have more confidence and courage in the things you do. Try to avoid comparing yourself to others. Stop worrying about what others have, and what others have been able to do. You are unique, focus on what will make you happy. What will success look like for you? The thing you might be wanting to do may have never been done before. You can set your own standards for what you want the finished product to look like. It’s hard to judge or gauge where you or your piece of art might fit into the world, but you’ll never know if you don’t go for it.
There are also ways that you can test the waters and do things without putting your face or name out there. If you are worried about what people may think, you can do it without telling or showing anyone. You can also put yourself out there under a nickname without your picture. For example, if you want to write a book, you can do it under a pen name, which is an alias. You don’t have to put your full real name out there. You’ll still get the credit, and you can find out if people like it or not without them having to know it was you.
Just ease into things. Once you create the work or do the thing, then you can wait if you want to and see how people react if that’s what’s holding you back. Then once you realize that people are going to appreciate it and enjoy it, you can have the courage to then to step out and say it was me, I was the one who made this, I was the one who did this. Courage is believing that you are enough, you are enough for yourself, for your family, and you’re doing what’s right for you and that’s what’s important. You are enough, you are unique, love yourself, appreciate yourself, appreciate the fact that you are unique.
Be willing to take risks
Have the courage to step out and be willing to be seen. Be willing to take risks even when the outcomes are uncertain. Your art, your ideas, your creations, these are all things that the world needs. Be brave, go for what you want, and be courageous.
I understand what you’re going through because I’ve gone through it before and I’m going through it in my own way right now by creating this blog post. These thoughts of not being sure what people will think every time I record a new episode of my podcast. I had to develop so much courage to write my book because I put a lot of my own self out there. Stuff that I would never have put out there in the past. Because in my world where I come from, you don’t put your personal business out there like I am doing, but right now, I’m having the courage to put myself out there for the sake of helping someone else. I am not concerned about the people who don’t like what I have to say, I am focused on the people who I can help.
I’m not saying it’s easy, but I’m saying it’s worth it. So be courageous, be brave, and put yourself out there if you really believe that what you have to offer is worth it. Do it with passion and purpose. Continue to develop yourself into the person that I know you are deep down inside. Shed those pieces of Armor and go for it.
You deserve to have it all,
Ben Povlow
Author of the book Self-Help for At-Risk Teens
Host of the podcast Self-Help for At-Risk Teens
