Chutzpah

Definition: supreme self-confidence; nerve; audacity; temerity

Balancing Qualities: It’s easy for qualities of strength and self-reliance to get out of hand if they are not balanced by compassion, kindness, and a willingness to see the other person’s point of view.

Too Far: insolence

Quote: Poets are excellent students of blizzards and salt and broken statuary. If the poet does not have the chutzpah to jeopardize habituated assumptions and practices, what will be produced will be sleep without dream, a copy of a copy of a copy. — Dean Young (1955–2022) American poet

Comment: Chutzpah is like a strong spice; a little goes a long way.