Courage, Fear, and Conquering

I read Ralph Waldo Emerson’s essay ‘Courage’. In this essay, he discusses the three characteristics that mankind respects most and why we respect them.

Here are the 7 most important lessons:

1. Courage is the Endowment of Elevated Characters

Courage is the point at which all other virtues are tested. Without it, no other virtue can stand.

2. The Lesson of Life

“He has not learned the lesson of life who does not everyday surmount a fear.” Do something everything that scares you if you don’t want to become a coward.

3. Antidote To Fear

Knowledge is the antidote to fear. Know- ledge. The ledge you know, you are not afraid of; it is only the ledge which you cannot see and do not understand that you are afraid of. Increase your knowledge, increase your courage.

4. Practical Power

We admire the man who can build a boat or a house or fix a car or bring about his vision into the physical world. We admire men with practical power.

5. Panic

“Panic is the terror of ignorance surrendered to the imagination.” If you can imagine the worst case scenario, you can imagine the best case scenario. Choose the best.

6. We Stopped Learning Courage

Men no longer are confronted with the uncertainty we as a species once faced and we have thus lost our courage. We must intentionally place ourselves in the midst of uncertainty to build our courage; otherwise, we become cowards.

7. They Can Conquer Who Believe They Can

Belief comes before ability. Victory is not won at the finish line, but long before, in the mind of the victor. Believe you can conquer and you will.

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Onward & Upward,

Nolan