In filmmaker Ken Burns’ remarkable series on the Civil War, historian Shelby Foote describes General Ulysses S. Grant as having “4am Courage.” He was describing how cool Grant was under fire, and even if awakened at four in the morning with a battlefield emergency, he wouldn’t be startled. He’d keep a cool head and make strong decisions. That kind of calm comes from FOCUS. Focus allows you to push out all the different and often conflicting opinions, voices, and hysterics that everyone around you is hearing, and concentrate on the single most important task of the moment. In my new book “Jolt!” I talk about that kind of focus and what it takes to learn it.
When sudden bad news happens, are you shocked, startled, or freaked out? Or are you able to focus, look straight at the challenge, and make a good decision?
The truth is, “4 am courage” is something we need 24 hours of the day…
