Maya Angelou famously said that “courage is the most important of all the virtues. Without courage, you can’t practice any other virtue consistently.”

Consistently is the key word. Courage is both foundational and foremost to helping an actor consistently choose honesty, tolerance, authenticity, integrity and every other virtue. If Maya’s quote was remixed and made into a manifesto, it’d be called Courage Over Everything and go a little something like this:

Courage Over Everything

I shall have the courage to say yes and the courage to say no.
The courage to tell it like it is and to say it ain’t so. 
The courage to ask for help and to choose on my own. 
The courage to persevere and to let that stuff go. 

I shall have the courage to reap and the courage to sow. 
The courage to live out loud and to keep fear on the low.
The courage to know myself and to question the status quo.  
The courage to stand united and to stand solo. 

I shall have the courage to fall back and the courage to grow. 
The courage to abandon comfort and to embrace the unknown. 
The courage to trust my dopeness and to overcome my woes.
The courage to take a risk and to take control. 

I shall have the courage to hold fast to my goals and my dreams. 
I can, I will, I shall choose courage over everything.