The larger the office, the smaller the courage inside it.

The more authority a person is given, the more layers of caution they tend to wear. Great decisions rarely come from the largest desks, because scale of position often dilutes the scale of conviction.

Positions of power are assumed to cultivate boldness, yet the reality is more often the opposite. The higher the rank, the more entrenched one becomes in the mechanics of preservation—preservation of image, position, and perceived stability. Every action is filtered through committees, reputation metrics, and career risk assessments. The will to disrupt erodes under the weight of political survival. In such an environment, courage becomes less about acting on insight and more about avoiding personal loss.