Courage has been the mark of great men since the dawn of time and it’s not about to change anytime soon.

Faced with the same choice of action, some people stand up to face the music and accept the challenge while others shrink away and drift into oblivion.

courage in the face of fear

It’s important to understand that courage is not the absence of fear but rather how one reacts to it. If you are faced with a challenge that causes the fear to build up within, you always have two options: take on the challenge or do nothing.

Now courage doesn’t need to be demonstrated on a Herculean scale all the time. The simple act of joining a gym if you are out of shape is a small act of courage. In the workplace, you can display courage by fighting for an idea or cause you believe in, even if your co-workers or higher-ups don’t agree with you.

The point is that courage is something that manifests itself in our everyday lives by helping us overcome our fears. We still feel the fear, but it is how we react to that fear that demonstrates to the world what kind of person we are.

discouragement

Think of discouragement as an inhibitor to courage. Discouragement is like fear in many ways. It starts in the mind and greatly affects what we do (or rather don’t do). In business, any endeavor is usually composed of many steps that are put together and ultimately lead to an ultimate goal.

Building a company, for example, requires many steps. Along the way, there is a good chance that you will get discouraged. Perhaps sales are not growing as fast as you would like; you hired some ineffective employees; there was a defect in one of your products and you had to issue a recall… the list is endless.

What you must keep in mind at all times, if you hope to become successful, is that discouragement is part of the game. That is, you will feel discouraged at times and that is when you must show the most courage.

Keep reading to learn how to be courageous and cope with adversity, with a few simple tricks that will make a huge difference in your life and make your career a success.

coping with adversity

Suppose you were a salesman having a rough month. It looks like you are going to miss your sales target and get chewed out by your boss. You start feeling down and become less productive, figuring you’re done for. This is where the process begins; you have to realize that discouragement is sinking its insidious claws into your mind.

Recognize that you are starting to get discouraged. Next, you need to remind yourself — no, drill into your head — that discouragement will get you nowhere. It will only help drag you down even more. So be quick and get it out of your system. Don’t let it get a firm hold of you or you’re toast.

Now the faster you can get rid of it and get moving to reach your goals, the better. How can you do that? Good question. The answer is through encouragement.

encouragement

I know what you’re thinking: “Great, I need to hire a cheerleader now.” Not quite, you are your own best cheerleader. Encouragement can and must come from within.

During the course of your life, you’ve certainly achieved grand things. Perhaps you won a gold medal in your grade school Olympics, got an A+ on a subject you liked, were named top salesman in your company for the week, or maybe you were elected student body president.

These are all achievements that required a certain amount of courage. More importantly, they are your achievements and nothing stops you from moving on to greater things. If you could stand up to the challenge and win back then, why not do the same today?

Tell yourself that you are capable of achieving great things, tell yourself that you’re smart, tell yourself that you’re the man for the job, and tell yourself that you’ll achieve your goals because you are willing to put in the necessary effort.

The point is that you have to encourage yourself to go for the brass ring. Don’t just sit back and assume that all will turn out okay because without your actions, it likely won’t.

The last thing you want to do is be on the sidelines and watch the parade pass you by. As Lewis Grizzard said: “Life is like a dogsled team. If you ain’t the lead dog, the scenery never changes.”

Now what could be more boring than staring at your ceiling for the rest of your life? Sure it’s safe, but have some courage, go out into the world and make a difference. After all, you only live once, and life isn’t a spectator sport!