I learned how to swim at the age of 54. I remember telling that to Diana Nyad. It was a bit humiliating. I guess if you are going to tell your secret to someone, it might as well be the woman who swam from Cuba to Florida at the age of 64. She was as surprised to hear it as I was to blurt it out. But it was true, and I owned it.

I hired a good friend of mine, Deb Paparelli, who taught at a swim school for kids ages 6 months to 12 years. So, to make sure I was couraging, I swam around five-year-old tadpoles and moms with kids in diapers in my one-piece bathing suit, swim cap, and goggles. Not a pretty sight. Thank God for the high chlorine content.

After a few months, I got the basics down and now know how not to drown. An excellent skill to have. However, it really wasn’t about swimming. It was about being a beginner. I like to practice putting myself in situations that seem bigger than me or “Couraging”. Like swimming, it takes practice, letting go of ego, and obviously, looking good.

“Courage is like — it’s a habitus, a habit, a virtue: you get it by courageous acts. It’s like you learn to swim by swimming. You learn Courage by couraging.” Mary Daly

Couraging expands our comfort zone. It makes the next “thing” we do seem not so daunting. Couraging is exciting, invigorating, and inspiring. Couraging can draw envy and jealousy from others only because they don’t courage themselves. Everyone will have an opinion – ignore it.

Here’s my advice. Start couraging and surround yourself with fellow couragers. Let me know how it goes. See you in Oz.