Think You’re Not Brave? Here’s Why That’s a Lie You’ve Been Telling Yourself!

Or do you only look at other people as being courageous?

Well, today, my friend, if you don't feel like you are the most courageous person in the crowd, well, why don't we change that?

Because you may think that being courageous is just a part of somebody.

It's what somebody's born with.

But in fact, today I'm going to show you the opposite is true.

Is that I believe being courageous is something that we build, that we only become courageous by the actions we take.

So, my friend, if you feel like you could use a little bit more courage in your life, well, hey, today is for you.

I'm your host, Kevin Lowe, and this, my friend, is episode 392 of Grit, Grace, and Inspiration.

SPEAKER_02: I got grit, grace and inspiration on my mind.

Don't have a storm step, I don't won't be left behind.

I'm stepping out in place because I'm perfectly designed.

I got grit, grace and inspiration on my mind.

SPEAKER_00: Before we dive into exactly what we're talking about in terms of courage, I just want to give you a quick programming announcement.

Starting next week, we are going to just one episode a week here on the podcast.

I figure it's the summer, you probably got big plans like summer vacations, pool parties, all the things.

And well, it just kind of makes sense.

So just remember that starting next week, we'll just be going to one episode a week.

It gives me the time to be sure that I'm producing the best content possible.

You're still gonna get the amazing interviews, you're still gonna get the solo episodes just like today's episode.

But instead of every Tuesday and Thursday, it will just be every Tuesday starting next week.

So when you check back on Thursday and you don't see an episode next week, just remember, oh yeah, Kev said we're only doing one episode a week through the summer months.

So, my friend, I just wanted to be sure that I keep you on the down low and keep you up to speed on what's happening behind the scenes here at Great Grace and Inspiration.

Now, back to today's topic of speaking about courage.

When it came time to prepare for today's topic, I of course did what any person would do in the year 2025.

No, I did not Google the question because that's like so last year.

Instead, I turned to ChatGPT.

Why, of course I did.

And this is the answer that ChatGPT gave me as far as what is courage.

It told me that courage is not the absence of fear, but rather it's the decision to act in spite of it.

I was happy with that definition.

I expected it to give me a much longer, more detailed definition of courage, but that just summarized it all up.

Having courage, it's not about being fearless, having no fear in life, but instead it's about taking action despite the fear.

That is courage.

That is being courageous.

But so the question, though, that I'm sure that you are asking, but what if I'm not courageous?

What if I don't have all of this courage inside of me?

How can I become courageous?

Well, that was the next question I asked.

I typed into ChatGPT asking if there was an equation, a formula that I could follow to become more courageous.

And this is what it told me.

Courage equals purpose times conviction plus action, all divided by fear.

Yeah, I guess I should have specified that I wasn't really great at math.

Um, I wasn't thinking I had to go back to algebra class to figure this equation out, but apparently Chat GPT knows more than me because it just gave me an algebraic equation like I was not expecting.

Again, the equation for you to be able to be courageous is courage equals purpose times conviction plus action, all divided by fear.

If that makes zero sense to you, well, we are in the same math class because that makes no sense to me either.

And before I go and text my old algebra teacher for help, I thought, okay, let's break this down into simple terms.

So I took it piece by piece.

And this is what I have for you today.

The first thing in the equation it spoke about was purpose.

So, in this context, your purpose, of course, it's your why.

It's the reason why you care, why you want to take action.

So, in terms of your own life and the situations that you might be presented with, why does this matter?

What is at stake if you don't act?

That is the purpose.

The first piece to the courage equation.

Then we go to the word conviction.

What do you know is right?

I'm talking about your core belief.

The thing that you know is right, even if it's uncomfortable, even if knowing what's right isn't the easy thing to decide on.

That's the conviction.

And then use the word action in that equation.

It's where you take movement, you start moving forward.

You take the step, you make the leap, you jump out of the plane, you take the action.

And then, of course, all of that with all the addition and multiplication was all divided by fear.

And what I'm looking at fear as in terms of this scenario is fear not necessarily being the enemy, but rather just the pressure that's going to help us reveal what's on the inside.

It's the thing that's pushing us forward, the fear of it all.

So now, if you're still confused, if you're still thinking this makes no sense, and Kev has totally lost me, well, let me dummy this down into a way in which I can easier understand what I'm even trying to say.

Basically, we're not looking to eliminate fear.

We just need to figure out how we can outweigh it, how we can better ourselves, how we can beat the fear.

So the way we're going to do that is by simply raising your level of purpose, being sure that you are crystal clear on your why.

We then add in that conviction, we take bold action, and then suddenly, when you combine all of that together, fear no longer has the hold on you that it once did.

That, my friend, is courage.

Again, if you can get clear on your purpose, your reason why, why this matters in the first place, multiply that times your conviction and taking bold action, my friend, fear no longer has the ability to hold you back any longer because you have become courageous.

Now, in reality, all of that might sound kind of cool, or maybe you're still just confused.

Either way, we'll roll with it.

But you might still be thinking, okay, that's all fine and dandy, but I'm not courageous.

And if that is you, well, then I want to challenge that.

Because I have a feeling you're probably way more courageous than you give yourself credit for being.

Because let me ask you this.

Have you ever made it through something that you thought you never could do?

Was it something that you knew would break you, and yet you came out the other side?

What about when you chose to show up, but never going in the first place would have been easier?

Did you show up?

Did you go?

Or what about when you said that I forgive you to somebody, even though the pain was still fresh?

Even though the easy thing would have been to not say anything at all, you stepped up.

You said I forgive you.

Or let's face it, in the middle of a tough season of life, I bet you got out of bed in the morning.

It didn't mean that it was easy, but you did it.

Why?

How?

Because you're courageous.

You have more courage inside of you than you ever thought you ever did.

I'm here to remind you of it.

We've been led to believe that courage is some big flashy thing, thing meant for the evening news about somebody making some courageous act.

And yeah, that is wonderful.

But it's also the things that you do when nobody's watching, when there are no cameras around, there are no reporters to catch your story.

It's you literally being courageous enough to just keep going one more day.

And the most important thing I want you to remember when we're talking about whether or not you're courageous and how to become more courageous is that you don't wait until you feel courageous to take action.

That's not how it works.

You take action and courage shows up in the process.

You have to be willing to take that leap.

And then that courage factor is born.

It is built, it is grown.

So to leave you with some actionable items, I encourage you, if you're in pursuit of living a more courageous life, to be full of courage each and every day, then I want you to ask yourself some simple questions.

Right when you wake up in the morning, what matters the most to me today?

That's your purpose.

What would I do today?

What action would I take if I viewed myself as being brave, as being courageous?

That's your move.

And the third question: what fear might try to stand in my way today?

What is the thing that's gonna stop me?

Is it gonna be me getting in my own way?

Is it gonna be something else?

What is it?

Name it, recognize it, realize it.

Let it know that you see it, you understand it, and you're ready for it.

Now remember, when we're talking about this, we're talking about real life.

I'm not saying that you have to have the courage to go climb a mountain today.

What I'm saying is you have to have the courage to hit send on an email, to ask the question, to walk through the front door.

My friend, I leave you with one final thought.

You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have.

You are stronger than you know, you're more amazing than you believe, and you're more courageous than you ever thought.

My friend, just by the simple fact that you're here today, listening to today's episode, it already tells me that you're ready for more, that you want to be a bigger, better version of you.

And it's all possible.

Each and every day, when the sun rises and you wake up, you get the choice to live this life how you want to live it.

So, my friend, I encourage you to take action, to be bold, to live out the life that you are meant to live.

Remember, starting next week, we're going to just one episode a week, each and every Tuesday.

Again, same amazing interviews, more solo content just like this to help make your life a little bit better.

So, with that said, I'm your host, Kevin Lowe, and this, of course, was another episode of Grit Grace and Inspiration.

SPEAKER_02: I will not fear the storm, my hopes well defined.

I want my faith, not my sight.

I want fear resigned, rising higher every day.

Oh, doubt's left behind, cause I got grit.

Grace and inspiration on my mind.

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The highest form of approval.

No haggling, no hassle.

No one called him boss.

He's still on the couch.

Astonishing.

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