In a speech that Teddy Roosevelt gave in 1910, Roosevelt said:
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly.”
The powerful Roosevelt quote resonated with Dr. Brené Brown, a research professor at the University of Houston Graduate College of Social Work, who gave the blockbuster TEDTalks “Brené Brown: The Power of Vulnerability”.
In the introduction to her book, Dr. Brown comments on Roosevelt’s words, which she says perfectly encapsulate her research into why she and other researchers find being vulnerable such a hard thing to do.
According to Dr. Brené Brown, Ph.D, in he book, Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead:
“When we spend our lives waiting until we’re perfect or bulletproof before we walk into the arena, we ultimately sacrifice relationships and opportunities that may not be recoverable, we squander our precious time, and we turn our backs on our gifts, those unique contributions that only we can make,” says Dr. Brown. “Perfect bulletproof are seductive, but they don’t exist in the human experience.”
Here are a summary of the ThenPower of Vulnerability key points:
- Vulnerability makes you authentic and allows you to feel love, belonging and joy
- To be vulnerable you have to:
- – Internalize that you are a worthy (of being loved) and enough the way you are
- – Have the courage of showing up and engaging even if could hurt
- “Your willingness to own and engage your vulnerability determines the depth of your courage”
“Daring greatly means the courage to be vulnerable. It means to show up and be seen. To ask for what you need. To talk about how you’re feeling. To have the hard conversations,” according to Dr. Brown.
Source: 5 insights from Brené Brown’s new book, Daring Greatly