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Muhammad Ali was a fighter in the ring, but his greatest act of courage happened outside of it. In 1967, he refused induction into the U. S. Army on religious and moral grounds, famously saying, 'I ain't got no quarrel with them Viet Cong. ' This decision cost him his heavyweight title, millions of dollars, and his prime athletic years. He faced prison and public hatred, yet he never wavered. Ali teaches us that true courage is the willingness to sacrifice personal gain for your principles, standing alone when the world demands you conform.
"I'm a fighter. I believe in the eye-for-an-eye business. I got no respect for a man who won't hit back."
"I know where I'm going and I know the truth, and I don't have to be what you want me to be. I'm free to be what I want."
"Life is a gamble. You can get hurt... To be a champion, you have to take the risk."
"He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life."
"It's lack of faith that makes people afraid of meeting challenges, and I believed in myself."
"I've wrestled with alligators, I've tussled with a whale. I done shackled lightning, thrown thunder in jail."
"The man who has no imagination has no wings."
"I’m a fighter. I believe in the eye-for-an-eye business. I’m no cheek-turner."
"Hating people because of their color is wrong. And it doesn't matter which color does the hating. It's just plain wrong."
Seeing how Muhammad Ali approaches Courage helps you apply the idea with more precision.
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"Use this collection whenever you need Muhammad Ali's lens on Courage."