Standing Up For Yourself May Be The Best Thing You Can Do For Others

A few months ago, I took an Overland trip from Cape Town to Windhoek, Namibia. For the first half of this trip, the tour guide was being a little rude to everyone. We all felt awkward when she collectively told us that we were stupid for not knowing how to set up the chairs or tents fast enough, and on and on.

Finally, one woman from Romania took a stand. “Sarah, can I talk to you privately for a minute?” she shouted across the camp. A lively ‘private’ conversation, that we could all hear perfectly, ensued. This is the first time anyone had challenged the guide’s rude behavior and we all breathed a sigh of relief. Someone was finally standing up for the group.

I was particularly impressed (perhaps a bit ashamed I hadn’t said something myself) and after dinner, walking back to the tents, I told this Romanian woman, “Thank you for standing up for the group. Where did you get the courage to stand up and be a leader like that?” Her response surprised me.

“I was standing up for me. She was being rude to me, ruining my vacation, and I don’t let people mess with me like that.”

Her actions were merely self-defense, but she’s become a defender of the rest of us too. While she’d been focusing improving her vacation, conditions improved for all of us from there onward. The tour guide did not shout at us or call anyone else stupid after that.

If you have the courage to stand up for yourself, you may unknowingly be standing up for others as well. You may not see yourself as a leader, but you may begin to be perceived as one.

When I discovered that this woman was not trying to be a group defender, but had improved conditions for all of us, I thought back over the past few years:

1. Where had I stood up for myself? Where had this (unknown to me) improved the lives of those around me as well?

2. Where did I not stand my ground (not wanting to be the self-centered person to rock the boat) when, had I taken action, I would have improved much more than just my my personal situation?

You and I may be rocking the boat exactly the way everyone was hoping it would be rocked, perhaps the way it needed to be rocked.

If done correctly, taking a stand for yourself, your rights, your needs, and perhaps your vacation, may be the best thing for those around your as well.