Message from AHVAP President-Elect
Courage – The call we answer, the call AHVAP Members answer
In preparation for my Courage presentation during our upcoming conference, I am currently reading an enjoyable book by Ryan Holiday, “Courage is Calling.” In the chapter, “Call We Answer,” he tells in great detail the story of a very brave man in history, Charles de Gaulle. He speaks of the courage de Gaulle used to work with Churchill and France. He reflects on Churchill’s description of de Gaulle as “a man that cuts through the noise, he reminds us of what we signed up for.” de Gaulle displayed great courage in his actions for France where he used his belief, bravery, and his unspoken courage to save France. Churchill called de Gaulle “the man of destiny, a man of great courage.”
As I reflect on our rich AHVAP journey, I find courageous Value Analysis professionals. Professionals that have worked tirelessly to advance our profession and those who have shared our Value Analysis practice and process before it was popular. Even before it was so critically needed as it is today. Holiday states in his book, “if we fight hard and long enough, we will find everyone is with us.” And that is where we find ourselves in Value Analysis as “we have fought hard.” We have also thought of ourselves as courageous! It has been studied and proven that when you think of yourself as courageous, you act more courageously.
Courage is also described as a “muscle.” As with any muscle, to build muscle strength you need to exercise or use the muscle. The strength of the courage muscle becomes stronger with increased use. So how do we use our “courage muscle”? One way to strengthen your courage is to step outside your comfort zone, to volunteer for a project or an expanded role.
As we prepare for our conference, I invite you to join me in exercising your “courage muscle.” I look forward to seeing you in Dallas as we continue our courageous AHVAP journey.
Sincerely,
Karen Niven, MS, BSN, RN, CVAHP™
President-Elect, Board of Directors
AHVAP
