Braving the Wilderness

ONE

Everywhere and Nowhere

When I start writing, I inevitably feel myself swallowed by fear. And it s especially true when I notice that findings from my research are going to challenge long-­held beliefs or ideas. When this happens, it doesn t take long before I start thinking, Who am I to say this? Or, I m really going to piss people off if I call their ideas into question.

In these uncertain and risky moments of vulnerability, I search for inspiration from the brave innovators and disrupters whose courage feels contagious. I read and watch everything by them or about them that I can get my hands on ­every interview, every essay, every lecture, every book. I do this so that when I need them, when I m living in my fear, they come to sit with me and cheer me on. Most important, while watching over my shoulder, they put up with very little of my bullshit.

Developing this process took time. In my earlier years, I tried the opposite approach ­filling my mind with critics and naysayers. I would sit at my desk and picture the faces of my least favorite professors, my harshest and most cynical colleagues, and my most unforgiving online critics. If I can keep them happy, I thought, or at the very least quiet, I ll be good to go. The outcome was the worst-­case scenario for a researcher or a social scientist: findings that were gently folded into a preexisting way of seeing the world; findings that carefully nudged existing ideas but did so without upsetting anyone; findings that were safe, filtered, and comfortable. But none of that was authentic. It was a tribute.

So I decided that I had to fire those naysayers and fearmongers. In their places, I began to summon up men and women who have shaped the world with their courage and creativity. And who have, at least on occasion, pissed people off. They are a varied bunch. J. K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter books I love so much, is my go-­to person when I m struggling with how to introduce a new and

Brené Brown, PhD, MSW

Praise for Brené Brown s Rising Strong

[Brown s] research and work have given us a new vocabulary, a way to talk with each other about the ideas and feelings and fears we ve all had but haven t quite known how to articulate. . . . [She] empowers us each to be a little more courageous. The Huffington Post

It is inevitable we will fall. We will fail. We will not know how to react or what to do. No matter how or when it happens, we will all have a choice do we get up or not? Thankfully, Brené Brown is there with an outstretched arm to help us up. Simon Sinek, author of Start with Why and Leaders Eat Last

With a fresh perspective that marries research and humor, Brown offers compassion while delivering thought-provoking ideas about relationships with others and with oneself. Publishers Weekly