Having the courage to do what is right is more critical todaythan ever. In today's business climate, every organization must beentrepreneurial, nimble and take smart risks just to survive.

However, the hyper-fast world is getting more complex anduncertain, creating greater fear in the workplace.

Having courage means managers can ask: “How can we do the rightthing for our customers, employees and society?” Out of fear,managers might ask: “How can we maintain our personal standing, ourjobs and the status quo?” Fear blocks an organization's ability tomove forward. Fear keeps millions of individuals from reachingtheir potential.

Courage makes change and innovation possible. Courage is vitalto challenge conventional thinking and envision new possibilities.CEOs know that talented people must take risks to solve bigproblems and innovate. Most importantly, individuals need courageto live by their values, even when job security is put at risk.

Even though job security is an outdated expectation, leadersmust create a courageous culture by fostering an environment wherepeople can bring forward new ideas, challenge the status quo andshare bad news, especially when it affects the customer. It takescourage for employees to communicate messages that are not wellreceived but often represent the canary in the coal mine.

Fearful cultures tend to exhibit a lack of alignment aroundvalues. Values may be on the organization's website but don't guidedaily behavior and decision-making. These companies are most oftenmanaged in a hierarchical fashion, with orders emanating from thetop instead of communication flowing in all directions throughoutthe organization. Managers are told what they want to hear insteadof what is most important for the business.

In a culture of fear-based silence, people know something iswrong, but don't speak up. This type of culture was inbred atGeneral Motors, leading to major car fatalities in the current caseof ignition-switch problems. These problems were known for years,but not reported and only recently addressed. Their emphasis was onkeeping things moving and not bringing anything to the table thatwould get in the way or bring bad news.

In courageous cultures, leaders share defined values andbehaviors repeatedly which filter down and are known and understoodthroughout the organization. Leaders insist on accountability andtaking personal responsibility, while creating a safe space formistakes.

They do not assign blame for failures, but seek to minimize thecost of failure, allowing for failure that instructs the employeeand guides the organization, all while containing costs. SiliconValley's mantra is emulated: “Fail fast, fail cheap, learn and moveon.”

Courageous leaders are wary of all-good news, making certainthat issues are brought to light in a timely and proactive manner.They know that glossing over a problem is invariably worse thanaddressing it early and actively. They consciously andconscientiously listen, as listening engenders learning. Whenemployees are afraid to appear disagreeable and shy away fromvigorous discourse, leaders encourage robust healthy debate anddemonstrate how respectful open discourse leads to optimaldecision-making.

To quote Eleanor Roosevelt: “Courage is more exhilarating thanfear and in the long run, it is easier.” In male-dominated WallStreet, Sallie Krawcheck believed in herself and was not afraid tospeak her mind when she held a high-powered job at Citibank duringthe mortgage crisis. She suggested giving clients their money backand was not afraid to write negative things as a research analystwhen no one was doing this.

Very often, the right decisions are the hardest ones to make.Using your values to make strategic decisions, both personally andprofessionally, although harder short-term, will in the long runprovide huge payoffs.

Stuart R. Levine is chairman/CEO of Stuart LevineAssociates. He can be reached at [email protected] or (516)465-0800.