By: Dr. Brené Brown
Reviewed by: Glain Roberts-McCabe
The Premise: In a follow-up to her book, Gifts of Imperfection, researcher Dr. Brené Brown dives deeply into the topic of vulnerability in Daring Greatly. Brown attempts to debunk the myth that being vulnerable is “weak”, but instead shows how, by showing vulnerability, we are demonstrating great courage. Brown explores feelings of “never enough”… whether that’s never good enough, never smart enough, never fit enough… and challenges these views of scarcity that hold many of us “small”. Daring Greatly shares how feelings of shame and the armour we build to protect ourselves create disconnection and feelings of isolation. By being vulnerable, we open up to connection and belonging. Exploring how vulnerability can deepen both our work and personal lives and relationships, Brown provides stories, strategies and manifestos to live by in this book grounded in six years of research.
The Bottom Line: Daring Greatly had been recommended to me by several of our members and I’d put it on my “maybe I’ll get to it sometime” list. Then I watched Brown’s TEDx talk on vulnerability followed up by her second talk on shame. Her words and approach completely resonated. Brown is a social worker by training but sounds more like a straight-talking CEO.Daring Greatly is one of those books that you need to read, digest, read again and reflect on. It makes you uncomfortable. If you’re like me and struggle with the very idea of looking too far under the covers, well, get ready to get uncomfortable. Eye-opening, thought-provoking and sure to make you think more deeply about your leadership and your parenting (there’s a lot of material in here for parents), this is one of these books that has the potential to truly change your life and your relationships – at work and home – for the positive.
Roundtable Rating: Highly recommended for individuals interested in living life to the maximum.
Check out the book and the author by visiting www.brenebrown.com.
