The Courage for New

 I watched My Year at Oxford this week, and something in me stirred.

Not because I’ve ever dreamed of attending Oxford, but because I know what it feels like to walk into a room—into a season of life—where I’m unsure if I belong, yet determined to make my mark.

The main character in the film has a life  experience that is reshaped by a single year in a new place. She became surrounded by unfamiliar traditions, new expectations, and people who see the world differently. It’s not just about academics; it’s about identity, courage, and the willingness to be changed by the experience.

We all have our “Oxford” moments. They might not look like ancient stone halls or candlelit debates, but they’re those life chapters where everything feels foreign… and yet something inside us insists, This is where I’m meant to grow.

I thought about how often in leadership—and in life—we avoid stepping into new rooms. We stay in the spaces where we feel certain, where we know the language and the rules. But the growth happens when we sit with the discomfort long enough to learn something new and long enough to be shaped by it. This is the active part of being uncomfortable.

As leaders, our job is not just to enter those rooms ourselves, but to invite others into theirs—and to remind them that feeling uncertain is often a sign they’re exactly where they need to be.

Maybe for you, the “Oxford” moment is taking on a project you don’t feel ready for.
Maybe it’s starting the business you’ve always dreamed about.
Or maybe it’s learning something purely because it excites you—even if it scares you, too.

Growth rarely comes from standing still. Sometimes it starts with walking into a room you’re not sure you belong in… and discovering that you do.

The world doesn’t just need you where you’re comfortable—it needs you where you’re becoming.