To become bold, you must make the bold choices…

“When you cannot make up your mind which of two evenly balanced courses of action you should take – choose the bolder.”

W.J. Slim

What is the downside of bolder action? If the choices are genuinely even, then the risk/reward for each should be the same. However, this question’s very nature highlights that a “bolder” decision carries an additional risk or the potential for failure.  

Below is a picture of the many definitions of “bolder” from www.dictionary.com. Many of these definitions resonate and apply within the context of the quote, but perhaps a different question to ask yourself when you can’t make up your mind is, “Which of these choices will inspire my soul to put in the extra work and minimize any risks? Which of these choices will have more meaning to me in five years?” 

Perhaps an even better question is, “Which definition of bold do I want to leverage to define who I am as a person?” 

Courtesy of Dictionary.com

Boldly free…

“Freedom lies in being bold.”

Robert Frost

It is amazing how much energy can be wasted on time spent worrying and doubting. It is equally amazing how clarifying and liberating it can be when a decision has been made and action is taken.

So, when in doubt make the decision. Take decisive action. Do the thing you know needs to be done. True freedom only follows action and boldness. If you make the wrong decision, you can always make another one.

You just might find that true freedom is simply the ability to make a choice.

Quietly bold…

“Boldness doesn’t mean rude, obnoxious, loud, or disrespectful. Being bold is being firm, sure, confident, fearless, daring, strong, resilient, and not easily intimidated. It means you’re willing to go where you’ve never been, willing to try what you’ve never tried, and willing to trust what you’ve never trusted. Boldness is quiet, not noisy.”

Mike Yaconelli

It is interesting to me that so many associate the description of someone with “boldness” with the negative terms described above. I might argue that doing any of the things listed early in the quote changes the label to “arrogant, egotistical or narcissistic.”

If you are bold, it is because you believe in something yet unseen and have the willingness, the passion, the desire, to take the risks to bring that vision to life.

Where have you been bold in your life? Where do you wish that you had been? What does “quiet boldness” look like for you?

What your problem isn’t, and what it is…

“Let me take some pressure off. Your problem is not discipline. Your problem is not organization. Your problem is not that you have yet to stumble upon the perfect schedule. And your problem is not that the folks at home demand too much of your time. The problem is this: there’s not enough time to get everything done that you’re convinced—or others have convinced you—needs to get done.”

Andy Stanley

Sometimes I read a quote and it just hits me between the eyes.  This is one of those.  Let me start by saying that Andy Stanley is one of my absolute favorites.  He has a special gift and if you ever get a chance to hear him speak please take full advantage of it.  He is exceptional.

There’s not enough time.  Period.  End of story.  It just can’t all be done.  When you come to terms with this fact it is liberating.  Give up the feeling of failure and insufficiency and and instead embrace the feeling of control, define what is most important and say yes to only those things.  Easy to say but oh so hard to do.  

I know that the challenge for me is figuring out just how close to the edge I can walk without falling over. I need to be uncomfortably close to the limit in order to feel challenged and inspired.  I must be stretched in order to grow.  The question that I am really pondering right now is whether or not I am choosing the right things to stretch for  Not only do we need to say “no,” we need to choose the right “yes’s.”  

 

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dusty

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