Why You Should Stand Up For Yourself
“Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.” ~ Winston Churchill
I stood up for myself as a child. For that bravery, I got tossed out of classrooms, told I asked too many questions, or sent to sit in the corner.
That skill was not and is still not wanted by society.
It interferes with the agenda of those in charge.
By high school, I had retreated into myself. It took many classes in assertiveness training, public speaking, theater and willful practice to restore my childhood courage.
This is what I discovered the second time around: As an adult, speaking up can be met with turned tables. Suddenly, you become framed as the problem.
Nice tactic to silence anyone with a different opinion.
Now, would that get me to zip it?
Nada.
No amount of having myself labelled the problem could be worse than sitting in a chair terrified to speak up. (more…)
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