Finding your courage

Finding your courage Chad Dickerson CEO, Etsy Hello Etsy (Berlin) - September 17, 2011Video of talk: http://helloetsy.com/session/dickerson/

What is courage?

Courage

Fr. corage (12c., Mod.Fr. courage)"heart, innermost feelings; temper"

Findingyour courage

Aboutyour heart

What do I knowabout courage?

Dad MomMe Brother

My grandfatherwas a farmer. He couldn’t read or write.

Fascinated by publishing

First job at a newspaper.

Things were moving to the web.

I worked really hard, teaching myself.

I became asoftware engineer!

All the while, I had a vague dream...

Reasons not to move there:

I was “settled.”

I knew no one there.

My whole family lived in North Carolina.

I had little money and SF is expensive.

My own mother didn’t want me to move.

So, lots of reasons not to do it. There always are.

One reason to do it: I wanted to do it.

So I just did it. (That was 13 years ago!)

It was diﬃcult.

I almost went bankrupt.

It was totally worth it.

That decision to move changed my life.

That’s just one story.

Etsy is a community of inspired stories.

http://etsy.me/ﬁndcourage

I also looked for wisdomfrom people I admire on the subject of courage.

What I learned.

Courage comes from doing.

You get [courage] by courageous acts.Its like you learn to swim by swimming. — Mary Daly

Take the leap!

"Start Anywhere."You will never have enough time, or training, or money, or items to sell to feel like you are ready to start. — jennybuttons (Etsy Seller) http://etsy.com/shop/jennybuttons

Once you start,you have to persist.

Opportunity is missed bymost people because it isdressed in overalls andlooks like hard work. — Thomas Edison

[Persistence] is the key to success, because no one will beas committed to your dream as you. Every single day,minute by minute, you have to step forward, put yourselfout there, and be courageous. — peaseblossomstudio http://etsy.com/shop/peaseblossomstudio

Recognize that there’s no failure.

I have not failed 10,000 times.I have not failed once.I have succeeded in proving thatthose 10,000 ways will not work.When I have eliminated the waysthat will not work, I will ﬁnd the waythat will work. — Thomas Edison

You can only learn from your mistakesand when youre not making mistakes,enjoy the serendipity when it comesyour way. parispennsylvania http://etsy.com/shop/parispennsylvania

Get support fromyour community.

sometimes you just need someoneto believe in you to ﬁnd the couragein yourself to overcome your fears. — daniellexo http://etsy.com/shop/daniellexo

...but be prepared to go your own way!

I did hear from discouraging or well-meaning peoplethat I did not know what I was doing, which was trueenough but I ﬁgure Id learn along the way.I heard there was no money in art, and the funniest, tome, anyway, was that the name I pick out for my shopwas too foreign, that someone might think Im aterrorist.I kept going because it felt right. — MajafariDesigns http://etsy.com/shop/majafaridesigns

Listen to your truest self.

Courage. . . . came from a burningdesire to make our own path. — theferriswheels http://etsy.com/shop/theferriswheels

When in doubt,go with your heart.

I’m not perfect,I’m perfectly myself. — sherrytruitt http://etsy.com/shop/sherrytruitt

That’s what courage is all about.

Start. Persist. Make mistakes.Be true to yourself.

Finding your courageis really ﬁnding your heart.

Good luck in your journey.

Thank you.http://etsy.me/ﬁndcourage

Finding your courage

by Chad Dickerson on Oct 08, 2011

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Finding your courage — Presentation Transcript