"In order for there to be courage, there needs to be risk.
It doesn't take courage to open up the refrigerator."
- Seth Godin
Whether it's asking a question, raising our hands, speaking in public, posting or publishing, expressing something new, asking someone out, having a difficult conversation, setting a boundary, or wanting to have a new experience that challenges us… our ability to push through the unfamiliar and take action has to do with the idea of bravery, courage and vulnerability.
When we want something new to happen in our life, we need to do something we’ve never done before.
A lot of the time, doing something we’ve never done before makes us so nervous that we may not end up doing it all. Putting ourselves out there requires courage and our willingness to be vulnerable.
In this episode I share the science behind building new neural circuits that can help us override our fear of doing new and challenging things so that we can build up courage and bravery as a skill that we can learn - and then teach to others.
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Can we teach people (and ourselves) how to be brave? What does being brave even mean? Can we learn how to have more courage? Is there a process behind it?
While there are no simple or concrete answers to this, looking at the idea of bravery through the lens of neuroscience might help us understand it better. And understanding things in new ways can help us and teach them. There are 5 key aspects that come up as we explore bravery from a nervous system and brain-body perspective. Learn about these in today’s Mindset Neuroscience Mini Episode.
Key concepts in this episode include the Fear Quadrant, Reappraisal, Agency & Inadequacy, and Expected Outcomes.
I also cover this topic in this video: The Science of Courage: How to teach bravery using neuroscience
"Creativity requires courage."
- Henri Matisse
