Courage begins when you stop holding back
Reading time: 3 min
Managing Director Jörg Schmidt talks about what it's like to let go, how he emerged from the experience more courageous, and what that has to do with our new online magazine.
There are moments when life offers us the chance to grow—and we need a moment to notice it.
For me, one of those moments was on the Adrenalina, one of the most challenging downhill trails on Lake Garda, a slope that felt as if someone had increased the force of gravity. My first instinct was to brake. Naturally. That's how we humans react when we fear losing control.
But there is a paradoxical truth when it comes to mountain biking: the more you brake, the more unstable it becomes. When you accelerate, you gain control—not because the risk disappears, but because we decide to use this energy consciously.
So I let go of the brakes. Just for a moment. And suddenly everything became clearer: the trail, the air, myself. No daring maneuver, just a quiet inner switch that flipped: You can do this, you're already in the middle of it.
What I learned back then had little to do with sports—but a lot to do with courage. The courage to just try. The courage to let go. The courage to surprise yourself. That feeling of letting go in order to have new experiences set something in motion that went far beyond that day.
This is precisely the feeling we want Haufe Akademie to you today with WEITER. – the new online magazine from Haufe Akademie .
Those who step on the gas gain control—not because the risk disappears, but because we decide to use this energy consciously.
Jörg Schmidt
WEITER. is all about continuing education, taken to the next level.
Because learning is not a one-time process, but a constant movement. It is not only about preserving your own knowledge, but also about applying it—and remaining open to what is yet to come.
We launched this magazine because we are convinced that continuing education is the strongest driver of innovation in our economy. Especially now, at a time when savings are being made in many areas—unfortunately also in the development of the people who make new things possible in the first place.
Continuing education offers exactly what we need most today: the ability to adapt, rethink, and put ideas into motion.
WEITER. is now published three times a year—always with a different, inspiring theme to show you how worthwhile it is to step out of your own shadow.
We tell the stories of people who took Haufe Akademie first step with Haufe Akademie —and whose stories prove that continuing education is worthwhile. Not only financially or career-wise, but also on a personal level.
