The Courage to Be an Engaged Neighbor
When we talk about becoming an Engaged Neighbor, we pledge to build connections intentionally, apply leadership skills right where we live, and grow our social capital through neighborhood relationships. Those ideas come to life through five REACH principles, and the fourth one—Courage—may be the hardest to practice in our everyday lives.
Courage to Be Available
The first act of courage is to discard a lifestyle of busyness. In many ways, busyness has become our society’s most accepted form of isolation. We fill every square on the calendar and call it productivity, but the cost is availability. Choosing to be available—to be interruptible—is a courageous act in a culture that equates worth with activity.
Courage looks like lingering in the front yard after mowing the grass, walking the dog a little slower, or sitting on the porch instead of the couch. These small shifts create opportunities for conversation, service, and connection. They turn proximity into presence.
Courage to Live Out Front
The second act of courage is choosing front yard living. It’s easier to retreat behind our fences and garage doors. But community doesn’t grow in isolation; it grows where people see one another. Front yard living doesn’t just change where you spend your time—it changes how you spend it. It turns ordinary moments into shared ones.
When we live life visibly, we invite trust. A wave, a kind word, or a simple check-in after a storm tells our neighbors, “You matter.” These interactions might feel small, but research consistently shows they increase neighborhood safety, social cohesion, and well-being.
Courage to Include
The third act of courage is inclusion. Every neighborhood has people who are overlooked, marginalized, disabled, widowed, or lonely. To engage them requires more than awareness—it takes action. Courageous neighboring means noticing who isn’t being included and finding a way to change that.
It might mean inviting someone new to the neighborhood cookout or shoveling a driveway for an elderly neighbor. It might mean taking time to learn a neighbor’s story before assuming you know it. Inclusion takes effort, but it also builds resilience. Neighborhoods where everyone feels seen and valued become stronger when challenges come.
Courage to Build Trust
Finally, courage involves following local etiquette—not as a list of rules, but as a commitment to trust-building. Every neighborhood has its rhythms and norms. Learning and respecting them—whether it’s how early to mow the lawn, how trash pickup works, or how neighbors prefer to communicate—creates predictability and peace.
Trust isn’t built overnight, but it grows through consistent, thoughtful actions that show you care about the well-being of your shared space.
Courage in Ordinary Moments
Courage in neighboring doesn’t mean doing grand things; it means doing ordinary things faithfully. It’s the courage to open your heart and your schedule, to risk being the one who says hello first, to care even when it’s inconvenient.
When we practice courage in our neighborhoods, we strengthen the social fabric that holds communities together. And when that fabric is strong, people thrive—not just as individuals, but as neighbors.
So this week, take a moment to ask yourself:
What would it look like to be more available?
Who nearby needs to be included?
And how can I build trust in my little corner of the world?
That’s the quiet courage of neighboring—and it’s how we reach toward one another.
Written by David L. Burton
MORE INFORMATION
Take the Engaged Neighbor pledge and become part of a movement! The pledge outlines five categories and 20 principles to guide you toward becoming an engaged neighbor. Sign the pledge at https://nomoregoodneighbors.com. Individuals who take the pledge do get special invitations to future events online and in person. Contact the blog author, David L. Burton via email at dburton541@yahoo.com or burtond@missouri.edu. You can also visit his website at https://engagedneighbor.com.
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