Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead

by Brené Brown

“Vulnerability is ______________.” Here are some of the replies: Sharing an unpopular opinion Standing up for myself Asking for help Saying no Starting my own business Helping my thirty-seven-year-old wife with Stage 4 breast cancer make decisions about her will Initiating sex with my wife Initiating sex with my husband Hearing how much my son wants to make first chair in the orchestra and encouraging him while knowing that it’s probably not going to happen Calling a friend whose child just died Signing up my mom for hospice care The first date after my divorce Saying, “I love you,” first and not knowing if I’m going to be loved back Writing something I wrote or a piece of art that I made Getting promoted and not knowing if I’m going to succeed Getting fired Falling in love Trying something new Bringing my new boyfriend home Getting pregnant after three miscarriages Waiting for the biopsy to come back Reaching out to my son who is going through a difficult divorce Exercising in public, especially when I don’t know what I’m doing and I’m out of shape Admitting I’m afraid Stepping up to the plate again after a series of strikeouts Telling my CEO that we won’t make payroll next month Laying off employees Presenting my product to the world and getting no response Standing up for myself and for friends when someone else is critical or gossiping Being accountable Asking for forgiveness Having faith