My favorite peer at work shared this quote with me this past week. I am certain I’ve heard it before, but I had forgotten it along the way. It is classic Churchill, challenging us to be strong in the midst of tough challenges. His “courage” dictum also found in this one you may have heard…
“You have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, some time in your life”
This work friend is fierce and a wonderful role model of effectively forging ahead against tough conversations. We all need to dismantle barriers and biases (and sometimes address the proverbial “elephant” in the room). She does this with finesse and elegance. It’s a gift, and one I feel we all need to polish up on.
Here’s what I have found so far: Courage takes an ongoing commitment to be true to what you know is the best for you, the team, etc. It takes dedication to not just “dial it in,” but to carefully craft a response, an approach, a business case if you will, to highlight your point of view. To counteract the conversation… to impact a decision that may well impact many others. We all have this inside gut check when we know that we need to come out from behind our desks and take that meeting, even when there may well be “dog barking” at the door. May we work toward being courageous.
I’d love to know your strategies. In the meantime, I am going to keep this quote close. It is inspiring and will help drive me toward the best in every conversation regardless of what opposition I may face.
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