“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, ‘I will try again tomorrow.’” ~Mary Anne Radmacher
My daughter is the most courageous person I know. She’s two years old and fierce.
So often we think courage looks like a warrior, soldier, or athlete.
But I think we have it all wrong. Courage has a soft side that we have ignored for centuries.
Take my daughter for instance. The other day she was running full speed ahead at the playground. She was so focused on getting to her favorite slide that she didn’t see the stick on the ground in front of her. In one second, she slipped, fell, and started bawling.
I ran to her, picked her up, and kissed her knee. One minute later, she was wiggling out of my arms, feet on the ground, and running faster than before.
Now that’s crazy courage. She had no reason to believe she wouldn’t fall again. However, she didn’t appear afraid at all. Even though previous experience told her she could fall again. She didn’t listen. She’s led by her enthusiasm and not her fear.
Some people would say this is naive. But I think this is something adults need more of: courage.
Courage is the ability to move forward boldly and authentically, guided by your intuition, despite fear, pain, or uncertainty. The word courage actually comes from the Latin word “cor,” which means heart.
Inner courageousness allows us to follow our hearts, listen to our intuition, and lead soulfully satisfying lives while having all of our needs, desires, and goals met.
Here are three ways you can have crazy courage like a toddler.
Hit the ground.
Go hard. Go fast. And if you fall, get up, dust off, and go again. But this time, go harder and go faster. Don’t worry about failure. Convince yourself that you can succeed. And no matter what sticks fall by your feet, persevere and keep going.
I’ve hit rock bottom before. And you know what? It’s not a bad place to be. You get to let go of everything and start again. Do you know how exciting it is to start all over again? Make better choices. Go in a different direction. The joy of releasing any burden, any guilt, all of the “should’s” and “suppose to’s” and doing it all from scratch.
So many people think they can’t start from the beginning and rebuild their life. So they stay in unfulfilling jobs, relationships, and negative situations. But honestly, the beginning of happiness is better than the middle of mediocrity or misery.
Tell the truth.
Be honest about your feelings. Don’t call fear apathy. Don’t call worry tiredness. If you’re afraid, it’s okay to say you are. The more you express your true feelings, the more connected you’ll be to your authentic self.
Emotions are energy in motion. They are meant to come up and be released. We were not meant to hold on to them. Unexpressed emotions create baggage that slows us down. The more you deny your emotions, the further down you push your authenticity. Let your emotions rise up and let them go.
Allow your enthusiasm to lead you.
Have you ever felt so much joy bubbling up inside you that you wanted to run away? I don’t think we allow the full capacity of joy to overwhelm our lives. When was the last time you laughed from your gut? When was the last time you let joy shake you, rock you, and fill you up? Lean in to your enthusiasm.
The more you seek to control this uneasiness, the less pure joy you will experience. Have the courage to let joy unnerve you and rock your boat. It’s a lot more fun to open up and let go. Trust me. Trust yourself. Fully commit to feeling good.
This means taking that class you’ve been meaning to take. Going to places you think are beautiful. Spending time with people who encourage you. Learning that skill you’ve been craving to learn.
Ditch the bucket list and start a living list of all the things you want to do while you’re alive. Start working on your list now!
Schedule “joy” into your calendar. I know you’re busy, but it’s worth it.
I recently started learning to play the piano. Making music exhilarates me. Will I become a concert pianist? Probably not. But even with two toddlers, I make time for it because I enjoy it.
If you start with these three things, you’ll notice your courage muscles begin to build. It may hurt in the beginning. But if you keep going, you’ll get stronger. And not the fake strength that relies on bravado or hiding our emotions. But real inner strength that grounds you in inner knowingness, confidence, and certainty.
Cultivating real courage makes us better people. And better people create better worlds.
Girl with arms raised image via Shutterstock
About Kyana Miner
Kyana Miner is a mother, wife, and speaker whose mantra is “crazy courage.” She is the creator of crazycourage.com where millionaires, leaders, and artists come together to busts success myths and share stories of failure, success, and courage. Do you want to be bolder and more daring in your life? Take the FREE courage challenge at CrazyCourageAcademy.com.
Though I run this site, it is not mine. It's ours. It's not about me. It's about us. Your stories and your wisdom are just as meaningful as mine. 
Excellent Article Kyana.
Your daughter is brave and fierce – like you, and from you. Most children are naturally bold and physical and risk-taking. Usually their parents, often Mom, teach them to be fearful and lack self confidence. They see scary stuff around every corner and it kills their courage.
Your article is very inspirational. It can be hard to overcome all that fear ingrained in us, but definitely worth it 🙂
Thank you Martin!
Thank you! I agree. We are taught fear but it’s totally worth it to overcome it.
We can learn a lot from the younger generations! We forget the lessons we learned that really helped us as a kid. I remember playing with race cars in my house pretending they were all in a race rearing for the finish line. Vrooming past one another at top speeds of 160 mph. If an adult where to do that we would say he is wasting his time or not mature, but to me that shows one of the most important abilities we have: creativity! Just like your daughter letting go immediately of the past and trudging forward, that courage is something to be admired and utilized in everyday life. Great article and insight!
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thank you Michael. I agree with you! Creativity is another lost gem of adulthood. We need it just as much as we need courage.