Author: Brené Brown
Publication Date: 2012
Genre: Self-Help / Non-Fiction
So, a few days ago, I was chatting with ChatGPT, asking for some book recommendations. I felt binge shopping and ordered all five recommendations without even checking who are the authors. And my books arrived. One book immediately caught my eye: “Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead” by Brené Brown.
And then, I dove into the intro. I realized it was about shame and vulnerability—sounded familiar. A quick Google search later, I remembered I’d seen Brené Brown’s TED talk a year ago. That's an iconic talk, damn, one of the most viewed TED videos on YouTube. What was so good about the video? It was just simple, genuine and raw. All that it needed were the same things- simple, genuine and raw. This book is also just like that—conversational, relatable, and oh-so-real.
I’m usually the type to skim books, preferring podcasts and YouTube shorts till date. But this one? Hooked me right in. Finished it in a day. It was like having a deep, introspective chat. Books or life is not about bundles of eureka moments; it’s those tiny, transformative insights that change our way of being. And this book definitely added those little insights for sure!
Here are some bits from the book that made me fall in love with the book:
Vulnerability isn’t inherently good or bad; it’s simply part of being human. Embracing it makes us braver each time. It’s life’s biggest challenge, transforming feelings of dread into freedom. Pretending to avoid vulnerability means pretending to be someone we’re not. Vulnerability requires immense courage. It’s easier to live in constant disappointment and avoid vulnerability than to take risks, but it also robs the joy.
Celebrate the people you love. Secrets make you sick. Interact, share, be vulnerable and real. We can’t let ourselves be seen if we’re terrified of others’ opinions. Humanity’s main goal? Connection—with ourselves and others. Disengagement destroys relationships and much more. Being excited and invested doesn’t make you lame; it makes you human. Things around are constantly fleeting and the fear of change is real among everyone among us. Just tell the person next to you, “I’m here.”
In chasing the extraordinary, we often miss the joy found in the ordinary. Once we learn to honor what we have, it also would mean that we honored what we've lost.Value isn't in big things. In a world of celebrity yardsticks, find your value in zero. We are in the era of scarcity. Nothing feels enough anymore. Scarce and abundance are on the same side of the coin. What's on the other side is just being enough. Repeat after me: No matter what’s done or left undone, I am enough.
Perfectionism is a myth. It's imprisoning oneself to constantly perform, please and perfecting. Performing to the point of exhaustion is avoiding reality. As Brene says it, there is a crack in everything and that's exactly how light gets in. An imperfect book published is better than the perfect one that never leaves the computer.
Shame is destructive; guilt is constructive. There’s a difference between “OMG, I suck” and “OMG, I sucked at this today.” Shame stifles innovation. Being guilty is cool but not shameful. And hence again, you're enough!
The world isn’t split into good people and villains. We all have those negative sides showing up at different times. Mindfulness is about acknowledging negative emotions, not avoiding them.
Everyone is ready to pinpoint narcissistic people for being narcissistic. Alot of could have been the same a lot of times unknowingly. The lines are blurry. Narcissism is high performance driven by self-hatred. Felt that at corner? At least a few times?
Once you’re real, you can’t be ugly—except to those who can't acknowledge beauty. This book just gives the feeling of awesome deep and real conversation. Get talking and don't miss out :)
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