Stories about courage tend to centre on people who, through their heroic actions, stand up against injustice. This book is about a very different kind of courage, one that often escapes notice: the courage you encounter in meeting rooms, during difficult conversations, when making unpopular decisions, in conflict situations, and at those moments when you decide to speak your mind anyway. In other words: courage with a small ‘c’.

In this book, Marry de Gaay Fortman examines courage with a small ‘c’ through a female lens and shines a spotlight on inspiring stories of women. A courageous step can lead to recognition, progress or change, but also to discomfort, resistance or misinterpretation. That is the ‘courage paradox’. Because the outcome is never certain, the ‘courage gap’ arises: the gap between what you feel that needs to be said and what you ultimately dare to say. How do you deal with this?

Speaking up with courage and continuing to follow your path is an art. The Art of Speaking Up Courageously shows that opportunities arise from the conversations you do decide to have. A courageous step usually turns out to be the right move.