Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing. To keep our faces toward change and behave like free spirits
in the presence of fate is strength undefeatable. - Helen Keller
In our day-to-day lives, the virtue of courage doesn't receive much
attention. Courage is a quality reserved for soldiers, firefighters,
and activists. Security is what matters most today. Perhaps you were
taught to avoid being too bold or too brave. It's too dangerous. Don't
take unnecessary risks. Don't draw attention to yourself in public.
Follow family traditions. Don't talk to strangers. Keep an eye out for
suspicious people. Stay safe.
But a side effect of overemphasizing the importance of personal security
in your life is that it can cause you to live reactively. Instead of
setting your own goals, making plans to achieve them, and going after
them with gusto, you play it safe. Keep working at the stable job, even
though it doesn't fulfill you. Remain in the unsatisfying
relationship, even though you feel dead inside compared to the passion
you once had. Who are you to think that you can buck the system?
Accept your lot in life, and make the best of it. Go with the flow, and
don't rock the boat. Your only hope is that the currents of life will
pull you in a favorable direction.
No doubt there exist real dangers in life you must avoid. But there's a
huge gulf between recklessness and courage. I'm not referring to the
heroic courage required to risk your life to save someone from a burning
building. By courage I mean the ability to face down those imaginary
fears and reclaim the far more powerful life that you've denied
yourself. Fear of failure. Fear of rejection. Fear of going broke.
Fear of being alone. Fear of humiliation. Fear of public speaking.
Fear of being ostracized by family and friends. Fear of physical
discomfort. Fear of regret. Fear of success.