Friends called him “a sad, gloomy man.” His cousin said he was “a...
Steve Magness@stevemagness
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Dec 04, 2025
~2 min read
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Friends called him “a sad, gloomy man.”
His cousin said he was “a very lazy man.”
He described himself as “the most miserable man living.”
The President of Harvard called him "a person of very inferior cast of character, wholly unequal to the crisis."
Doctors said he came “within an inch of being a lunatic for life.”
It sounds like a description of a broken, weak man.
And yet, history remembers him as Abraham Lincoln.
His cousin said he was “a very lazy man.”
He described himself as “the most miserable man living.”
The President of Harvard called him "a person of very inferior cast of character, wholly unequal to the crisis."
Doctors said he came “within an inch of being a lunatic for life.”
It sounds like a description of a broken, weak man.
And yet, history remembers him as Abraham Lincoln.
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We have this myth of courage: bold, fearless, stoic.
We think we know what a hero looks like.
But here is a man who failed often, suffered lifelong depression, and was riddled with self-doubt.
Lincoln shows us that the true merits of courage are found within. And we often miss them in others.
We think we know what a hero looks like.
But here is a man who failed often, suffered lifelong depression, and was riddled with self-doubt.
Lincoln shows us that the true merits of courage are found within. And we often miss them in others.
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You can see this courage in his values.
In 1858, friends warned his speech would ruin his election chances.
Lincoln replied, "If it is decreed that I should go down... let me go down linked to the truth".
He chose principles over popularity. And gave the now famous House Divided speech.
In 1858, friends warned his speech would ruin his election chances.
Lincoln replied, "If it is decreed that I should go down... let me go down linked to the truth".
He chose principles over popularity. And gave the now famous House Divided speech.
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He didn't let his ego get in the way.
In 1854, he sought to be a Senator.
But when the political math turned, he dropped out to support a rival.
He wrote he could not let the cause be ruined on a point "merely personal to myself".
He sacrificed the title to secure the mission. That rival would later author the 13th amendment.
In 1854, he sought to be a Senator.
But when the political math turned, he dropped out to support a rival.
He wrote he could not let the cause be ruined on a point "merely personal to myself".
He sacrificed the title to secure the mission. That rival would later author the 13th amendment.
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Harriet Beecher Stowe, once wrote, "The eyes of princes, nobles, aristocrats, of dukes, earls, scholars, statesmen, warriors, all turned on the plain backwoodsman . . . watched him with a fearful curiosity, simply asking, 'Will that awkward old backwoodsman really get that ship through?'"
The man who seemed least fit for the role became the one to hold a fractured nation together through integrity and grace.
The man who seemed least fit for the role became the one to hold a fractured nation together through integrity and grace.
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We often confuse bluster with strength.
We think confidence looks like loud certainty.
Lincoln shows us that real power is quiet.
It is the ability to face the "full truth" of a dire situation, feel the fear, and still steer the ship through.
Toughness is the capacity to sit in the tension without breaking.
We think confidence looks like loud certainty.
Lincoln shows us that real power is quiet.
It is the ability to face the "full truth" of a dire situation, feel the fear, and still steer the ship through.
Toughness is the capacity to sit in the tension without breaking.
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Lincoln reminds us:
You don’t have to feel strong to be strong.
You don’t have to look fearless to act courageously.
You don't have to have a wonderful inner life in order to do the right thing.
Courage, Integrity, Bravery are often found in those we least expect it from.
You don’t have to feel strong to be strong.
You don’t have to look fearless to act courageously.
You don't have to have a wonderful inner life in order to do the right thing.
Courage, Integrity, Bravery are often found in those we least expect it from.
