cour·age the ability to do something that frightens one.
I am fiercely afraid of heights. Yet for some strange reason I am completely intrigued by outdoor sport climbing. It comes with a thrill and excitement that few other things I've experienced in this life bring. Climbing calls me to be courageous in a way not many things can, because of this I am constantly putting myself in a place from which I challenge myself to climb.
On every route I climb though I encounter something called the crux of the route. It is the most challenging part-the one you have to talk yourself into to overcoming. Its the part of the route that involves breathing, choosing to trust yourself, leaning into the rock and 20 seconds of courage. If you can do this I truly believe that you can overcome any part of a route successfully.What if everything you did came out of this same state of courage? Would your life change dramatically if overcoming your fears was a natural, beautiful and expected part of your life? For me it would.
If I lived courageously in everything I did amazing things would happen. I can say this because I am all to often paralyzed by fear and great ideas are occasionally stifled because of that. This world needs more courage-more people willing to take the risk even if the rocks at the bottom are sharp and the fall could be devastating. Courage and lack of courage affect every part of my life. When courageous in climbing I take the risk and finish the route, when I'm not I fail the route and have to come down. Often bruised and shaking-overcome by fear.In Graphic Design and my career when I choose not to be courageous my solutions are mediocre, lacking in that one thing to push them to the next level. they are lifeless. When I step into courage in design the design comes alive and engages everyone who sees it. Courageous design allows people to feel things using only their eyes. It challenge people to live lives of courage.
I'm choosing to live a life of unrequited courage. Leaning into the rock and trusting myself to jump and not fall. I'm challenging you to do the same. Embrace a life of courage and live that way every day. Freely and fearlessly purse new and exciting climbs, even if you may fall. I can promise you it will be worth it.
