Congruence + Values: Brené Brown and the Power of Vulnerability (that is, the Power of Being Open)

Unfortunately, my video--the first one--is super-lengthy, but I can't even begin to express how well I think that they align well with my top values of openness and love. Watch it if you have time; not only is Brené Brown super funny, but she is excellent at getting her point across. If you like it and want more, watch the second video, which, for the first few minutes, actually fits a bit better with what I'm about to say:

We cannot be fully open to other people, to new ideas, to the love that can be shared between people and communities, without allowing ourselves to be vulnerable. That is, we must be open. We must allow ourselves to be seen in the truest light. We must be open to growth, to new possibilities; otherwise, we will maintain possibly-biased and one-sided world views and beliefs. We must let ourselves fail; for if we do not, we will simply float along without ever truly achieving anything. You read that correctly: our biggest achievements are had when we fail. Thomas Edison would be a great example; he went through hundreds of designs before he settled on what later became the traditional incandescent light bulb. What could be more vulnerable than failure?

In sum, and connecting with congruence, I try to live my life by being open to...almost everything. To growth. To other people. To failure. To success. To knowing that I can be wrong. To new possibilities and points of view. I try to welcome my successes and my failures with open arms, because I know that I wouldn't be who I am without both of those experiences. Foremost, however, I try to be open to other people.

And I believe firmly that when we allow ourselves to be vulnerable (that is, when we allow ourselves to be open), we form greater communities, greater friendships, greater bonds than we would otherwise. We build better things, find better answers, and we don't break a sweat. Because we know that no matter what, someone else has also failed, someone else has also lost a friend, someone else has also suffered.

Empathy, community, love, openness, and vulnerability are interconnected and you cannot separate one from the other. And together, they form my number one value.

What do you think?