Audentes Fortuna Iuvat
If any of you have received an email from me, you’ve probably noticed the Latin in my signature. “Audentes fortuna iuvat” – Fortune favors the bold. This is so paramount for me, and those in business. There is so much uncertainty in business – especially in the current economy. We must not forget that the whole reason we started our own companies it the thrill of venturing out there and ‘doing it ourselves.’ While there are risks in everything you do, it is the thrill of emerging victorious that compels you to press on.
Let’s step away from business for a second – not everyone has a business. This phrase applies to everything in life. Think about it. As a single guy, I know there are times when I’m out someplace and I see a woman I would love to talk to, but I chicken out or convince myself that I have too much going on to worry about meeting someone. Have you ever been in a situation in which you knew it was going to take some moxie, but if you did it, you had the chance to emerge victorious? Think about a time you chose to stay back and not risk it. What do you think you might have missed out on? What would it have been like if you had just gone for it?
Spend a minute or two and imagine being ‘that guy (or girl)’ for a day. You know, the super-confident, attractive, intelligent, capable, commanding, yet down to Earth person that has no fear – that’s who I want you to imagine being for a moment. It’s not about trying to be someone else – it’s about removing that FEAR of uncertainty / rejection from the person you already are.
See yourself walking up to that guy at Starbucks and introducing yourself to him. See yourself having all the right things to say. See yourself feeling fearless. Now see him smiling at you, and you know the risk was all worth it.
Take a moment and imagine yourself, after eating lunch at the same place for months, finally going over and talking to that woman from the office across the street. Imagine having all the right things to say. Imagine seeing her smile and laughing with you. Imagine how incredible it feels to be rewarded for being fearless.
Good fortune comes at a cost, my friends. You have to have faith in yourself. You have to look fear in the eye and press forward. Faith is the only known antidote to failure, and is truly the golden secret to living without fear. So today I want you to imagine what it would be like to live without fear, and then go forth and BE BOLD.
AUDENTES FORTUNA IUVAT!
Source – English translation from Virgil’s Epic, Aeneid . (70 B.C.E – 19 B.C.E.)
