AN
ATTITUDE OF BOLDNESS
Cultivate an Attitude of Boldness:
Being
bold is not something that you can “pull out of a hat” when you’re giving a
presentation or speech. You need to develop an attitude of speaking out in your
day to day life. Otherwise you won’t develop the courage to be bold in your
presentations. Practice saying what’s on your mind when you’re with just one
other person or a small group.
I’ve found blogging to be
extremely useful in helping me be bold. Some posts I’ve written have taken me
some time to publish because of my fear, but having done so I’m bolder. Here
are some thoughts to help you develop an attitude of boldness in everyday life.
1. Stop being
nice
What stops me being bold
is that I want to be liked, I want to be nice. I don’t want to have to deal
with anyone being upset or offended by what I’ve said. It’s worked for me in
many ways, but it holds me back too. I keep this quote on a post-it above my
desk:
2. Saying
what you think enhances your career
Do you hold back saying
what you think because you want to make sure that everything you say makes
perfect sense and is supported by evidence? Me too.
3. Not saying
what you think annoys people
I’ve sometimes held back
on saying what I think fearing that it will upset people. Then the situation
deteriorates and I end of saying what I think, only to be told “Why you didn’t
tell me that earlier?”
4. Your ideas
can help other people
Do you think your ideas
are not worth sharing, that they’re obvious.
5. What’s the
worst that can happen
Sometimes when I want to
say something bold, I stay silent because I just imagine a nameless disaster.
But if I think it through and ask myself “What’s the worst thing that
could happen?” then I realise that the worst that will happen is that the
person I’m speaking to might be upset for a day. Can I handle that? Yes, I can!
And then often they don’t even get upset for five minutes. They just thank me
for being straight! Often the consequences that we fear from being bold don’t materialise.
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