Boldness requires Grace

A challenging article by Dan Rockwell!

Boldness takes you further than timidity. But, boldness is dangerous. Lack of boldness is bedfellow to inaction. But, boldness is an ugly beast when taken too far.

The sins of inaction destroy more than failure.
It takes character and skill to act boldly with grace.

Bad boldness:

1. Uses anger and fear as energy.
2. Reacts “against” more than pushes “forward.”
3. Is loud in private and quiet in public.
4. Bowls people over, unnecessarily.
5. Is arrogant, rude, and ill mannered. .
6. Acts like an angry child when it doesn’t get it’s way.
7. Takes revenge and holds grudges.

Anything worth doing requires boldness.

10 qualities of graceful boldness. Boldness enables leaders to:

1. Face uncertainty with grace, confidence, and realistic optimism.
2. Keep trying when progress is slow.
3. Serve when underappreciated. Rise above self-pity.
4. Rethink.
5. Say, “I don’t know.”
6. Accept correction with gratitude.
7. Change course.
8. Try again after failure.
9. Take action when failure matters.
10. Express what’s in your heart.

Leadership requires boldness.

7 Ways to find graceful boldness:

1. Keep doing stuff until you find what you really love, then keep doing what you love.
2. Humility is the heart of healthy boldness. Put others at the center, not yourself. The greatest freedom is seeking another’s highest good.
3. “You develop courage by doing courageous things, small things, but things that cost you some exertion– mental and, I suppose, spiritual exertion.” Maya Angelou
4. Cultivate friends who bolster your boldness. Invite people into your life who see your frailties and believe in your potential.
5. Embrace restlessness and discontent with a “make it better,” not a, “make it perfect,” approach. Perfectionism is fear in disguise.
6. Treat people with kindness, generosity, and high expectations.
7. Forgive offenses quickly. But, hold people accountable.

How can leaders develop boldness?

What does graceful boldness look like to you?