“Rumbling with Vulnerability”

“Rumbling with Vulnerability” has never been more important.  Brené Brown describes this as the first principle at ‘the Heart of Daring Leadership’.  “Courage and Fear are not mutually exclusive”, she says, and haven’t we seen that in the last few weeks?  Bravery and fear can lie hand in hand, understanding this can allow us to tackle periods of fear more powerfully.  Seeing the examples of bravery and courage on the news every day is inspiring and terrifying at the same time, from President Zelensky remaining in Kyiv to lead his people, the Ukrainian people living in fear of death sheltering in basements with barely the essentials to survive and the Russian TV editor, Marina Ovsyannikova risking her life to stand up for her beliefs and what is right.  I think it’s normal for us to ask ourselves, ‘If I were in that position would I have the courage to do what they are doing?’.  If we’re really honest with ourselves, a little piece of us isn’t always 100% certain we would, and admitting that is recognising our failings, which is frightening.  Acknowledging fears is so important.  It’s the only way we can RUMBLE with our vulnerability – saying them out loud, committing to staying curious and listening to them with the same passion we want to be heard.  Understanding this as a leader, when we’re about to have a difficult conversation or make a tough decision, is important – it enables us to show up ‘with an open heart and mind so we can serve the works and each other, not our egos’.  Amen to that, and may those who are in the most difficult situations at the moment keep their courage to continue.    

What behaviours have we seen in leaders around us in our work and our homes that are courageous ?

What fears do we need to acknowledge in order to rumble a little more easily with our vulnerability ?