The Light in Our Sky Series #5
A quote from Brenè Brown
The Light in Our Sky
Volume #5
March 17th, 2025
“There is no greater threat to the critics and cynics and fearmongers than those of us who are willing to fall because we have learned how to rise.” Brené Brown
PA: Brené Brown is a bestselling author of inspirational books, a professor, noted public speaker, and podcaster, but I’d never heard of her until I stumbled upon this quote, which I love. “Willing to fall,” is the key moment for me. It speaks to a particular kind of courage, the courage to try something, especially something large with a great chance of failure; to be unafraid of making a complete fool of yourself; and to go on after failure and try again, or try something else. No matter the voices—internal or external—of criticism, cynicism, and fear.
ZAN: I recently watched Brené Brown’s Netflix special “The Call to Courage,” in which she equates courage to vulnerability—if you think about it, how can you be willing to fall if you aren’t willing to be vulnerable and risk falling? Which makes me realize that a lack of willingness to be vulnerable is what critics, cynics, and fearmongers have in common. To be vulnerable is to open yourself up to criticism, to assume that people are good at their core (the opposite of cynicism), and acknowledge real fears (rather than directing people toward absurd sources of fear as a fearmonger does). Learning to rise after a fall can only happen after choosing vulnerability—easier said than done.
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Thanks for writing about this. I heartily agree- willing to be vulnerable which opens up the experience of both falling AND rising. And growing. And then becoming. It is something we automatically do in childhood- especially young children- fall and get up and try again. Without self- judgment. It is how we learn. Celebrating trying which supports the process of becoming!! Your writing helps us all to support one another in our attempts to be vulnerable. Thank you.