What Courage is Being Asked of You Now?
I recently attended the Hudson Institute of Coaching’s annual conference and heard an amazing discussion between two wise elders, John P. Schuster and Peter Block. They shared a powerful reminder that we need more courage in the world, and left us with this question to ponder:
“What courage is being asked of you now?”
My “now” courage: I am stepping more fully into bringing the idea and practice of self-coaching into the world. Heads up!
What’s yours? I encourage you to reflect on this question as well.
Thoughts on Courage – David Whyte
I’m a big fan of David Whyte. His book, Consolations: The Solace, Nourishment and Underlying Meaning of Everyday Words,is well worn on my bookshelf. Here is an excerpt from his brief essay on Courage (one of those everyday words):
“Courage is the measure of our heartfelt participation with life, with another, with a community, a work; a future. To be courageous is not necessarily to go anywhere or do anything except to make conscious those things we already feel deeply and then to live through the unending vulnerabilities of those consequences. To be courageous is to seat our feelings deeply in the body and in the world: to live up to and into the necessities of relationships that often already exist, with things we find we already care deeply about: with a person, a future, a possibility in society, or with an unknown tha
A Morning Offering – John O’Donohue
Excerpt from a poem by John O’Donohue
May my mind come alive today
To the invisible geography
That invites me to new frontiers
To break the dead shell of yesterdays
To risk being disturbed and changed
May I have the courage today
To live the life that I would love
To postpone my dream no longer
But do at last what I came here for
And waste my heart on fear no more