Quotes About Courage

I had three long conversations with Marusya over a cup of coffee. She told me her whole rather silly story. To some degree we became friends. I like people like that--doomed, dying, helpless, and brazen. I always say, if you're in trouble, you're not sinning.

Serinity Young

If failure is not an option, then neither is success.

Yes, I think it's okay to abandon the big, established, stuck tribe. It's okay to say to them, You're not going where I need to go, and there's no way I'm going to persuade all of you to follow me. So rather than standing here watching the opportunities fade away, I'm heading off. I'm betting some of you, the best of you, will follow me.

Winners quit fast, quit often, and quit without guilt

The easiest thing is to react. The second easiest thing is to respond. But the hardest thing is to initiate.

Everyone will think it's stupid! Everyone says it's impossible. Guess what? Everyone works in the balloon factory and everyone is wrong.

The people who skip the hard questions are in the majority, but they are not in demand.

Heretics must believe. More than anyone else in an organization, it's the person who's challenging the status quo, the one who is daring to be great, who is truly present and not just punching a clock who must have confidence in her beliefs. Can you imagine Steve Jobs showing up for the paycheck? It's nice to get paid. It's essential to believe.

Tell your lizard (brain) to shut up.

Passion can overcome fear - the fear of losing, of failing, of being traditional.

People have come to the erroneous conclusion that if they're not willing to start something separate, world-changing, and risky, they have no business starting anything. Somehow, we've fooled ourselves into believing that the project has to have a name, a building, and a stock ticker symbol to matter.

It's extremely difficult to find smart people willing to start useful projects. Because sometimes what you start doesn't work. The fact that it doesn't work every time should give you confidence, because it means you're doing something that frightens others.

The secret of leadership is simple: Do what you believe in. Paint a picture of the future. Go there.

in every organization everyone rises to the level at which they become paralyzed with fear.

Initiating is really and truly difficult, and that's what leaders do. They see something others are ignoring and they jump on it. They cause the events that others have to react to. They make change.

Change isn't made by asking permission. Change is made by asking forgiveness, later.

It's uncomfortable to stand up in front of strangers. It's uncomfortable to propose an idea that might fail. It's uncomfortable to challenge the status quo. It's uncomfortable to resist the urge to settle. When you identify the discomfort, you've found the place where a leader is needed.

We choose not to be remarkable because we're worried about criticism.

The challenge is to focus on the work, not on the fear that comes from doing the work.

Seizing new ground, making connections between people or ideas, working without a map—these are works of art, and if you do them, you are an artist, regardless of whether you wear a smock, use a computer, or work with others all day long.

The linchpin feels the fear, acknowledges it, then proceeds. I can't tell you how to do this; I think the answer is different for everyone. What I can tell you is that in today's economy, doing it is a prerequisite for success.

Extraordinary benefits also accrue to the tiny majority with the guts to quit early and refocus their efforts on something new.

But what if I fail? You will. The answer to the what if question is, you will. A better question might be, after I fail, what then? Well, if you've chosen well, after you fail you will be one step closer to succeeding, you will be wiser and stronger and you almost certainly will be more respected by all of those that are afraid to try.