Daring Greatly

How the Courage to be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love and Parent. Brene Brown. What a title!

​What particularly intrigued me was the parenting part – more on that later.

What does vulnerability really mean? Well, Brene describes it as putting ourselves out there, facing uncertainty, taking risks and exposing ourselves emotionally. If we spend our lives waiting until all is perfect, we potentially sacrifice opportunities and potential relationships.
The origins of ‘Daring Greatly’ lie in a speech Theodore Roosevelt delivered in April 1910 at the Sorbonne, Paris. The speech is sometimes referred to as ‘The Man in the Arena’, this is why…… he describes the difference between soldiers who stand back and criticise and pick faults to the soldiers who get themselves ‘out there’ into the ‘arena’ covered in blood and dust, who may or may not succeed.  The difference being the soldiers who do embrace that enthusiasm and devotion are the ones who are daring greatly.
Brene describes ‘perfect and bulletproof’ as being seductive, but doesn’t exist in the human experience.  We must walk out into the arena, whatever that looks like – a new relationship, important work meeting with courage and a willingness to engage.

The book is a result of 12 years of research. She talks openly and gives many examples of what vulnerability has looked like in her own life.

I particularly like the chapter on ‘Parenting in a culture of never enough ‘.  As many of us know parenting is a mind field at times and as she says a ‘colour coded parenting handbook’ just doesn’t exist! Vulnerability comes with being a Parent and lies at the heart of the family. It defines us as a family, we share our best moments with our worst moments. She talks about if we push away vulnerability we are turning parenting into a competition where we are comparing, we are not being.  She also talks about the importance of raising our children to love and accept who they are, this can only happen if we as Parents can love and accept who we are.

This book certainly made me think, I particularly like the analogy to the ‘arena’ and getting out there and taking risks…….

I can see this will be a book I dip in and out of often.
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I hope you have enjoyed the short review of it.​