C.O.U.R.A.G.E. is Leadership

Aristotle called courage the first virtue because it makes all of the other virtues possible. Courage is a characteristic of great leaders, and followers tend to lean into those who are bold and confident in decisions. Courageous leaders are willing to take risks and embrace failure as lessons for future attempts. Courage is not the absence of fear; it is the willingness to move forward anyway.

If I am honest, I do not describe myself as courageous. I am risk-averse to a fault at times. Although others have stated I am brave for being willing to take risks and journey into the unknown, there is a fear hidden beneath the surface. Although some of the decisions I have made seem like acts of courage, often they are terrifying leaps of faith deemed necessary for survival or as an act of pure obedience to God.

Perhaps, I am more courageous than I give myself credit for, but honestly, I believe it is only because of my relationship with Christ that I can embrace risks. I battle with fear, a fear that is not paralyzing, only because I ask God into it. I pray over Matthew 6:25-34 and Luke 12:22-34 and am still working on letting the worry go. However, I have learned that courage can be cerebral, while fear is emotional. Some may disagree, but that is how I process the emotion tied to decisions that require bravery. I am not a leader who will take bold risks without C.O.U.R.A.G.E.

Calling out to God for clarity in His will

Optimizing skillsets and resources to determine the best outcome

Utilizing the wisdom of my team

Reflecting on previous lessons learned

Asking hard questions (See below for great ones by Andy Stanley and my mentor and friend Sally Blumer)

Gauging the risks to the mission, team, and individuals

Empathizing with the needs of others impacted

Having the C.O.U.R.A.G.E. to lead is essential to ensure I am creating an environment where my team can be courageous and bold in their decision-making and actions. I want my team to take risks, fail forward, and try new things. I also want them to know they have a leader they can trust who cares deeply for each of them and their families.

I know courage is vital to leadership, and perhaps I will one day consider myself brave, but for now, I have the mind of C.O.U.R.A.G.E. to let God lead me in my weakness while I love with all my heart.

Questions to ask when making decisions:

The Integrity Question: Am I being honest with myself . . . really?
The Legacy Question: What story do I want to tell?
The Conscience Question: Is there a tension that deserves my attention?
The Maturity Question: What is the wise thing to do?
The Relationship Question: What does love require of me?
The Kingdom Question: Where will your gifts have the greatest impact on the Kingdom?

Comments

Buella (cancer) Has Spread

Buella was entirely removed along with five lymph nodes and all the breast tissue they could remove on both sides. The tissues and tumor were sent for pathological testing. The report came back and was not what we hoped for. Buella has spread to the lymphovascular system, lymph nodes, and tissue around the nodes. Buella was also less than 1 mm away from the chest wall, so cancer cells are likely in the chest wall too. The tumor grade was thought to be a Grade 1 before surgery (not aggressive), and has now been determined to be a Grade 3 (most aggressive and has the highest recurrence rate). The news was hard to receive as I was praying for it to be all contained in the single tumor, and that would mean just surgeries and careful watching for a bit. However, this is not the story of my journey. I will need radiation, and we are waiting for the Oncotype test to come back to determine the need and type of chemotherapy. This will take 4 weeks, and we cannot start any treatment u...

Well, Poo: Update on Cancer Treatment

The radiation oncologist entered our room in a medical halo, looking very uncomfortable and much like an image of Frankenstein. He was healing after suffering an injury to his neck in a swimming pool two weeks ago. "How are you doing?" he asked with genuine care and concern. "Well, obviously, better than you at this point," I replied as I internally scolded myself for complaining about the rough nights sleeping in a recliner the past 6 weeks. He smiled and said, "Yeah, maybe so." Then we got down to business. He reminded me that before surgery, we had discussed the possibility of doing radiation. He had laid out some clear signs that it would be necessary. Buella (the cancer) had spread to the nodes (CHECK) Tumor is greater than 2 cm (CHECK) There are cancer cells in the Lymphovascular system (CHECK) There are unclean or close margins from tumor edges to chest wall (<1 mm CHECK) You are premenopausal (CHECK) Each component increases the odds of lo...

Eviction Notice: Buella (Cancer), You Have Been Served!

Dear Buella, This is your notice that you are being permanently evicted from the premises, also known as my body, effective July 1. You have exceeded the number of recommended days to be in residence by more than 30 days; therefore, you will forcibly be removed so you can no longer wreak havoc upon the landscape of our lives. - Management / Allie Dear Family and Friends, On July 1st, I will have a double mastectomy and begin reconstructive surgery. Buella, the name I gave my tumor, has been served her eviction notice after 70+ days since detection, and we are grateful to have a date scheduled. However, I do keep trying to convince Gavin that traveling to the Amalfi Coast for pasta and coffee would do wonders for healing cancer instead. If you have a study that supports my hypothesis, please share it with me, as I have read at least 50 research articles and a few books about cancer in the past month and have yet to find a correlation or causation study about the benefits of authent...

Inside the Mind of an Educator

Search This Blog