Academic Reflection 3: Brene Brown

Brene Brown spoke about a topic that many people, both young and old, struggle with: vulnerability. It is something that opens us to criticism and rejection, though it is a necessary step to loving ourselves as well as others. She begins her motivational talk by reminiscing about a time when she confessed her lack of self-appreciation due to a woman associating her to a “storyteller”. She admitted this form of identification made her worried about what others would perceive her as, even though she later realized a storyteller was who she actually was. She also mentioned a quote that stated “if you cannot measure it, it doesn’t exist”, which really changed her perspective on herself.  She learned to lean into the discomfort of life. Life is full of messy situations we experience at some point and rather than feeling the responsibility of cleaning up her mess, Brene Brown learned to cope with it. She continues to uncover the fact that humanity tends to focus on the negative experiences when asked about love  or companionship. Brown emphasized the importance of vulnerability and how we tend to build a wall around us to protect us from embarrassment; however, we should be learning from the feedback we receive, rather than running away from it. Her talk about vulnerability really showed me that when becoming a leader, you will be faced with situations such as business meetings and social events where putting yourself out there is essential in making a good impression. Furthermore, throughout her TEDTalk I learned to develop self love and have the courage to be imperfect. We should develop compassion towards ourselves, for we cannot truly love others before we love ourselves. Most importantly, I learned to be vulnerable, because even though it can make us feel uncomfortable and open us to rejection, it pushes us to become a better person and impactful leader. I will apply what I learned by reminding myself in times of discomfort to put myself in difficult situations, for even if I feel vulnerable in the moment, I will later appreciate the experiences I faced.