Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.

This insightful observation springs from the diaries of Anaïs Nin, a French-born Cuban American writer whose deeply personal, often erotic writing certainly required a healthy dose of courage. In the June 1941 entry where she wrote these words, she reflects on two different kinds of bravery: the ability to be emotionally open and feel deeply for others, and the courage to hope for a better world amid the horrors of war. But her words ring true in any life circumstances. If you’re willing to face what scares you, it will broaden your world. Those risks are not easy to take, but the reward is a fuller, richer, and more vibrant life.