Boldness: not hesitating or fearful in face of actual or possible danger or rebuff
Boldness is our willingness to do the right thing when things get difficult or stressful. This means that it is used and acted upon regardless of what fear we may have or barriers we may face. Have you ever found yourself in a time where the truth needed to be spoken? Maybe you feared what others may think of you if you began to pursue those desires in your heart?
Boldness is the complete opposite of fearfulness. This isn’t meant to say that it lacks fear or anxiety, rather it means pushing past these feelings that may stir inside of you to do what makes your heart sing. It is a pursuit in getting out of your comfort zone and stepping out to make that decision for your company, paint that piece that would really show the depths of your heart, create that new website with features so great and daring. The definition of boldness itself almost makes me feel a little uncomfortable reading! Step out and over those negative feelings. Say, do, and be, despite the risks that may be involved.
WHAT IS GETTING IN THE WAY OF YOUR BOLDNESS?
“Indecision is the graveyard of good intention.” - anonymous.
What is standing in your way of making a bold step in life? Indecisiveness can keep you at a standstill. One technique I use with my clients is using the question “WHY?” When you begin to utilize this question, it begins to assist an individual in getting to the core of their standstill and hesitation. Asking this question may be a process that could take an hour, a day, a week, or a month. This is exactly where action in waiting takes place, and we begin to find our next step.
BEING COMFORTABLE WITH THE UNCOMFORTABLE.
Our comfort zones can inhibit us from completely pursuing boldness. Our comfort is an easy place to be. It is well-known. It hasn’t changed much. It is “safe.” It is easy to retreat here when we are faced with an event in our lives that we know will require boldness and stepping outside of that bubble. Sometimes I am absolutely mind blown by this concept. When I am preparing a speech for a conference or meeting one-on-one with my clients, it is so easy for me to stay and talk on what I know works, what sounds good, what is comfortable to talk about and “easy on the ears.” In my mind, I picture a level that I can’t see to reach but am longing for. It may not be overcoming a mountain, but sometimes it’s just stepping into a place of unknown. This level requires me to step out in boldness and be comfortable with being uncomfortable. This is the point where we know we are growing, our creativity is thriving, and our inspiration is blooming. We aren’t in that standstill, but we are pursuing boldness and newness in our lives.
GET IT GIRL.
Boldness comes from the confidence we have in who we are and who we are made to be. It is standing up and believing in those unique talents and skills that have been developing inside of us. Taking a leap of faith in yourself is scary, but necessary, no matter how long or short the leap may be.
A friend of mine recently described boldness like this: “I see boldness as taking a step or a half step when all seems lost, all seems impossible, and all seems unknown.” It is taking the big picture, the dream, or vision one might have and taking one action toward it. Literally one action. It can take one sound, one movement, or one breath to be bold. We see boldness as a giant movement in someone’s life, a wall too high to climb, or a mountain too squirrelly to summit. But when we see it like that, we see it as a barrier to success rather than a tool for our success.
As you being to pursue boldness and what that may look like in your journey, here are three things you can do TODAY to add more boldness to your life:
**1 // Write down where in your business / life you’re most comfortable:** Are you stuck in a comfort zone? How beneficial will this zone be in 1 year, 5 years, 10 years? Where do you see your life being directed?
2 // Commit to asking yourself ONE hard question, “WHY”: Ask “WHY?” Get to the core of what is making you stay at a standstill. Maybe you have a friend, family member, or counselor that can help dig deep into the depths of you to bring out the reasons holding you back from stepping into your full potential.
**3 // **Be confident and take action. Write down ONE thing you can do this week to move forward with boldness. Write it on a sticky note and put it where you can see it! Remember: you are so needed. There are specific things in this world that require your set of skills, your passions, your talents, your personality. We may not always get it “right,” but when we begin to know who we are deeply and into every corner of our being, beauty is revealed in that action and believing our worthiness.
Pursue boldness, and watch as opportunities and growth begin to expand before your eyes.
Photo by Valerie Denise Photos in the Art by BBR studio