Take 25 seconds to watch this gorgeous natural natural rock water slide in Brazil.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ldZZPFssHKI

Certainly the slider shows some courage, slipping into the unknown experience. A gash and some stitches or a cracked head could have happened, though they didn’t. I love the visual of the kid sliding with the audio of the circumspect.

So where do you stand on the courage vs prudence issue?

Yesterday, a potential client drove with me to an old apartment building. The real estate agent didn’t have the key in the key box, so there appeared no way into the building. My client managed to jump up on an electrical meterbase, then reach for the tip of a descending steel fire escape that no longer descended, then pulled himself up and shoved a door open. Then he said to me, “You probably can’t get up this way, I’ll see if I can get another door open”.

Though he was a bit younger than me, the “You probably can’t do this” statement sufficiently motivated me to scurry right up that sucker as well. Perhaps not too prudent, but it got me thinking about that dance between courage and prudence.

I’ve long abhorred the concept of living in fear of any risky consequence. The “Sleepwalking through life to get to death safely” seems such a waste of our adventure here on Earth. Yet, as my father still reminds me, “You don’t need to play in traffic, either.”

I’ve found a helpful trick: try to never let fear dictate your actions. Don’t be afraid to be courageous. Don’t be afraid to be prudent. Actively choose your course, not from fear, but from experience, wisdom and the knowledge that none of us get out of here alive.