Brave people make other people braver. Your nerve today might be someone else’s permission tomorrow.

Nerve moves through a group faster than almost anything else. One person asking the question, stating the unpopular view or trying something badly changes what everyone else believes is allowed, usually without any of them noticing where the permission came from. You are almost certainly borrowing some of yours from somebody.

Assume somebody nearby is deciding whether to try. Let them watch you do it clumsily rather than perfectly, because a polished version helps no one. Say out loud that you were nervous, since that is the part people actually need to hear.