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by
Ryan Holiday
When you operate out of fear, when you’re on our heels, you have no shot. It’s simply not possible to lead that way. To succeed, you must take the offensive. Even when you’re being cautious, it must come with the assumption of constant advance, an insistent move toward victory always. You have to demand control of the tempo. You have to set the tempo—in battle, in the boardroom, in matters both big and small. You want them to fear what you are going to do, not the other way around. Stand Your Ground
One man with courage makes a majority.
The question for you, then, is are you that person? Are you part of the problem or can you be the solution? Are you the one they call? Or are you the one they have to calm down?
Fight for every yard. Fight for you. No one can make a person do wrong.
All the great commanders and entrepreneurs of history were successful because of the risks they took. Because while they may have been scared, they weren’t afraid. Because they dared greatly. They entered the arena. They rolled the dice. They had guts.
But has anyone ever accomplished anything in a field they don’t care about? Has anyone done the right thing ironically? Nobody became great without believing that such a thing was worth doing. Nobody is brave without first braving and triumphing over cynicism and indifference.
Each one of us has within our hands the power to end our own captivity. Each one of us has the means to assert our agency. It begins with a choice, but it is ensured by action. Few men of accomplishment, da
“Where there is only a choice between cowardice and violence,” he said, “I would advise violence.”
others are willing to be pragmatic in their place. Sometimes physical courage is required to protect moral courage.
We cannot be bullied. We cannot do nothing. In those moments, we’ll have to hit back, and we’ll have to hit hard. We must raise our fists. We must make our stand. Lest we end up on our knees.
“One way to remember who you are,” he said, “is to remember who your heroes
Man is pushed by drives. But he is pulled by values. VIKTOR FRANKL
Gandhi had said he’d rather choose violence than cowardice. What he and other nonviolence practitioners chose instead was something even more magnificent and
If you operate from a place of fear or from selfishness, you’ll miss this. You’ll find yourself caught in an escalation trap. Nobody wins a war—metaphorical or literal. Sun Tzu would say that it is best to win without fighting—to have maneuvered in such a way that the enemy has lost before it has even begun. That’s right.
Make People Bigger
Abernathy and Levinson made King taller. They made the movement stronger. Can the same be said about you and the people around you?
The leader risks themselves for us.
Silence Is Violence
“A time comes when silence is betrayal.”
We can’t keep silent. We can’t remain passive. We have to be willing to take them on. It’s the only way we can help. The Audacity
Defeat is a choice. The brave never choose it.
Words don’t matter. Deeds do.
The study of truth, followed by conduct.
We have to stop thinking of courage only as what happens on the battlefield or on a bus during the Freedom Rides. It’s also just not being afraid of your boss … or the truth. It’s the decision to follow your own creative path. It’s drawing an ethical line. It’s being a weirdo if that’s who you are. It’s voting your conscience, not what the crowd wants. Or what your parents want. It’s not only doing these things when destiny calls you onto the world’s
