CONCLUSION

Be Steadfast in Your Courage

Life is a shipwreck, but we must not forget to sing in the lifeboats.

—VOLTAIRE, FRENCH WRITER
AND PHILOSOPHER

YOU’VE ARRIVED AT THE END of this book hopefully knowing you never “arrive” fully as a communicator. The waves will keep coming. You’ll lose your footing and start again. Brave communication doesn’t follow a step-by-step recipe, so don’t let anyone tell you it does. There’s no one right way to do it. You never graduate, but as you take smart risks, your communication becomes more powerful. This lands you some exciting opportunities you may not have believed you’d see—the kind that have you grinning as you call a friend to say, “You’re not going to believe what happened!” An interesting side effect of success is finding yourself a beginner again, tested by new scenarios, needing to call upon your courage yet again. Courageous communication keeps opening new doors. It becomes who you are more than what you do when you welcome risk for a higher purpose in everyday interactions.

I watched a tai chi video and the instructor (Master Lam Kam-Chuen) offered something that tickled me. It’s brilliant advice about holding one position with your body (or communication goal: courage) for what seems like a long time: “Don’t bother to give up.” Exactly right! As you stumble in your attempts at brave communication, don’t bother to give up. Go forward determined to grow as someone who accepts setbacks, and your growth is a given in the long run.

We develop courage as we go. Whether you’re 19 or 92, each time you try a Pro Move, you gain guts to face your next challenge. It’s like building muscle. What you do next, and next after that is communication improvisation. It comes uniquely from you, adding something to the mix that we all lose if you don’t push yourself a little. As you make up Pro Moves of your own, your heart, body, and mind work together. You become a medium through which communication is more effective and meaningful. It’s the practice, not the perfect, that matters most.

I hope the time you’ve spent considering courageous Pro Moves creates many positive returns for you. I truly believe beautiful rewards await outside your comfort zone as you explore new ways to interact. Of course, it’s not just your world you impact for the better, it’s ours. As you seize opportunities to be brave, sometimes you get the joy of seeing a risk pay off, while other positive outcomes happen unseen. Still, every effort counts. We notice your communication. We notice your participation. We can be deeply influenced by your choices and your unique flair. You’ve got role model potential; that is a fact. There’s a Dakota Sioux proverb: “We will be known forever by the tracks we leave.” Your courage helps you clarify what you stand for so you can speak, write, and listen in alignment with your values.

Your reputation and happiness are determined to a large extent by your communication. It is your autograph and your art. When your fear rises up, remember you are never alone in that emotion. We’re all afraid sometimes. Acting despite your fear is the key to overcoming hidden challenges. Fear is a friend that reminds us we’ll have to choose to continue despite it. The world is your communication canvas and your palette is always expanding. Now go and paint your masterpiece!

If you hear a voice inside you saying, “You are no painter,” then paint by all means and that voice will be silenced, but only by working.

—VINCENT VAN GOGH,
DUTCH POST-IMPRESSIONIST PAINTER