There’s no getting away from it, we’re at our very best when we are vulnerable. If it’s not scaring us then it’s probably not pushing us too hard. If we’re not pushing into our edge, out of our comfort zones, then we merely exist. Living requires risk; I think the meaning of life might just be living.
Vulnerability comes from a place of difficulty, we feel vulnerable because of our past experiences, learned behaviors, and beliefs. Vulnerability comes from shame, fear, isolation and confusion. No wonder we balk at the thought of exposing it for the entire world to see. However, what happens when we do expose our soft insides like this? We connect. We become brilliant. We tap into our inner genius and we create meaningful and lasting imprints. As a wise person (whose name escapes me) once said: Everything you could ever want is on the other side of fear. For anyone in any doubt of just how key vulnerability is to us and our true contentment, check out the marvelous Brené Brown’s research via her TED talk here In fact, check it out even if you’re certain I’m right. It’s brilliant, and you’ll be one of the 3 remaining people on the planet who hasn’t if you don’t, and imagine how vulnerable that’ll make you feel. I aim to be authentic, authenticity is one of the most wonderful benefits of vulnerability; it’s also really hard to achieve some of the time. Like, when there’s anyone else nearby....kidding. But it’s tough; it’s not something that comes naturally to most of us. We have a facade, or many facades, and exposing our truths can be testing. But almost all of what we feel, dread, and associate with our vulnerability is internalised, on the outside we appear the same, in fact, we appear pretty groovy. Authenticity is, after all, a lot easier to not fake than fakery is to fake. There’s probably a better way of saying that. The majority of people I talk to in the course of my day come ready prepared with a degree of vulnerability, and I wanted to share some things that are easy to forget at times when our authenticity is being challenged (by ourselves more often than not). It is my belief that:
It’s more than okay to be vulnerable, it’s essential. True growth begins only when we accept ourselves as we truly are - weaknesses and all. The more vulnerability you allow yourself, the more awesome your relationships will be, and not just those relationships with others, but with the world, and most importantly by far, with yourself. Thich Nhat Hanh says something like: "Being yourself is to be truly beautiful", and we all know how right that is, think how your heart melts at witnessing true vulnerability, it’s like seeing a soul shining through a body.
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