“His intelligent physiognomy breathed forth energy. It was not that of an audacious person, it was that of a darer. These three words from an unfinished verse of Virgil are often cited:
“Audaces fortuna juvat”….
but they are quoted incorrectly. The poet said:
“Audentes fortuna juvat”….
It is on the darers, not on the audacious, that Fortune almost always smiled. The audacious may be unguarded. The darer thinks first, acts afterwards. There is the difference!”
~Jules Verne. Dick Sand. A Captain at Fifteen~

Exactly! It is so meaningful and so important to adapt it for ourselves.
Sometimes we might be jealous for audacious people their willingness to take surprisingly bold risks. However it is not that so precious personal quality not to have fear at all as you can put yourself and others into danger. The fear is meant to keep us safe. It’s purpose is to protect us. And we have to learn to control, to balance it. That’s true that we might fall in it and stay in our comfort zone even if that is not comfortable anymore. However, dareness is the quality when we are conscious about the risk we are willing to take. We understand our strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats and from the point of the bigger picture view we are enabling ourselves to act. That is the quality that Jules Verne is talking about saying that fortune is smiling for those people in a long term run.
The author beautifully joins the orphan boy’s limited theory knowledge and practical inexperience with his motivation, love and responsibility of people he is in charge with to describe the darer’s picture and show us the real courage to act.