Inspirational Quotes
Words to motivate, inspire, and guide you.
Brene Brown Quotes
ShameCourageReaching Out As a shame researcher, I know that the very best thing to do in the midst of a shame attack is totally counterintuitive: Practice courage and reach out!
VulnerabilityCourageAuthenticityFear Vulnerability is about showing up and being seen. It's tough to do that when we're terrified about what people might see or think.
PerfectionismGrowthAchievement Perfectionism is not the same thing as striving to be our best. Perfectionism is not about healthy achievement and growth; it's a shield.
ParentingSelf-DoubtUncertaintyChallengeJudgment Ironically, parenting is a shame and judgment minefield precisely because most of us are wading through uncertainty and self-doubt when it comes to raising our children.
ConnectionHuman NatureAuthenticityDesire We're hardwired for connection. There's no arguing with the bioscience. But we can want it so badly we're trying to hot-wire it.
HappinessGratitudeMindfulnessSimplicity I don't have to chase extraordinary moments to find happiness - it's right in front of me if I'm paying attention and practicing gratitude.
PerfectionismApprovalAcceptance Many people think of perfectionism as striving to be your best, but it is not about self-improvement; it's about earning approval and acceptance.
Role ModelingIntegrityKindnessParenting First and foremost, we need to be the adults we want our children to be. We should watch our own gossiping and anger. We should model the kindness we want to see.
VulnerabilityUncertaintyGrowthAcceptance I spent a lot of years trying to outrun or outsmart vulnerability by making things certain and definite, black and white, good and bad. My inability to lean into the discomfort of vulnerability limited the fullness of those important experiences that are wrought with uncertainty: Love, belonging, trust, joy, and creativity to name a few.
VulnerabilityShame One of the things I did when I discovered this huge importance of being vulnerable is very happily moved away from the shame research, because that's such a downer, and people hate that topic. It's not that vulnerability is the upside, but it's better than shame, I guess.
Self-WorthAuthenticityVulnerability If you think dealing with issues like worthiness and authenticity and vulnerability are not worthwhile because there are more pressing issues, like the bottom line or attendance or standardized test scores, you are sadly, sadly mistaken. It underpins everything.
Emotional IntelligenceCommunicationSelf-awarenessCoping Skills Kids who have an understanding of how and why their feelings are what they are are much more likely to talk to us about what's happening, and they have better skills to work it out.
AuthenticitySelf-acceptanceIdentityCourage What's the greater risk? Letting go of what people think - or letting go of how I feel, what I believe, and who I am?
EnoughnessSelf-WorthContentmentSufficiency For me, the opposite of scarcity is not abundance. It's enough. I'm enough. My kids are enough.
BoundariesWork-Life BalancePrioritization One thing that I tell people all the time is, 'I'm not going to answer a call from you after nine o'clock at night or before nine o'clock in the morning unless it's an emergency.'
ConnectionVulnerabilityExternal OpinionSelf-Perception When you stop caring what people think, you lose your capacity for connection. When you're defined by it, you lose our capacity for vulnerability.
LoveBelongingSelf-WorthPotential When you get to a place where you understand that love and belonging, your worthiness, is a birthright and not something you have to earn, anything is possible.
VulnerabilityLoveUncertaintyRelationship Waking up every day and loving someone who may or may not love us back, whose safety we can't ensure, who may stay in our lives or may leave without a moment's notice, who may be loyal to the day they die or betray us tomorrow - that's vulnerability.
ParentingShame ResiliencePersonal Growth My husband's a pediatrician, so he and I talk about parenting all the time. You can't raise children who have more shame resilience than you do.
ParentingUncertaintyEmotionChallenge The uncertainty of parenting can bring up feelings in us that range from frustration to terror.
ImperfectionStruggleWorthLoveBelonging You're imperfect, and you're wired for struggle, but you are worthy of love and belonging.
JoyHappinessWholeheartednessExperience I've learned that men and women who are living wholehearted lives really allow themselves to soften into joy and happiness. They allow themselves to experience it.
CommunicationPartnershipChangeSelf-ProtectionStruggle Normally, when someone we love is turning away from a struggle, we self-protect by also turning away. That's definitely my first response. I think change is more likely to happen if both partners have common language and a shared lens to see problems.
BusynessBack to SchoolWorkAutumn In many ways, September feels like the busiest time of the year: The kids go back to school, work piles up after the summer's dog days, and Thanksgiving is suddenly upon us.
VulnerabilityUncertaintyRiskEmotional Exposure Vulnerability is basically uncertainty, risk, and emotional exposure.
HumanityEmpathyConnection I think if you follow anyone home, whether they live in Houston or London, and you sit at their dinner table and talk to them about their mother who has cancer or their child who is struggling in school, and their fears about watching their lives go by, I think we're all the same.
LeadershipAccountabilityPotentialSustainability To me, a leader is someone who holds her- or himself accountable for finding potential in people and processes. And so what I think is really important is sustainability.
JudgmentVulnerabilitySelf-ComparisonProjectionSelf-Esteem We judge people in areas where we're vulnerable to shame, especially picking folks who are doing worse than we're doing.
EmpathySelf-CompassionConnectionSupportPersonal Growth I've learned a lot since I was a new mother. My approach to struggle and shame now is to talk to yourself like you'd talk to someone you love and reach out to tell your story.
Self-AcceptanceBelongingAuthenticityVulnerabilityConfidence The truth is: Belonging starts with self-acceptance. Your level of belonging, in fact, can never be greater than your level of self-acceptance, because believing that you're enough is what gives you the courage to be authentic, vulnerable and imperfect.
Race RelationsPrivilegeShameSocial DynamicsGuilt You cannot talk about race without talking about privilege. And when people start talking about privilege, they get paralyzed by shame.
VulnerabilityPerfectionismFear Of FailureExpectationResilience I was raised in a family where vulnerability was barely tolerated: no training wheels on our bicycles, no goggles in the pool, just get it done. And so I grew up not only with discomfort about my own vulnerability, I didn't care for it in other people either.
ShameSelf-WorthInadequacyEmotional PowerPersonal Struggle Shame is the most powerful, master emotion. It's the fear that we're not good enough.
StressBurnoutFear of Missing OutTechnologyBalance We use work to numb out. We can't turn off our machines because we're afraid we're going to miss something.
FaithVulnerabilityMysteryDogma Faith minus vulnerability and mystery equals extremism. If you've got all the answers, then don't call what you do 'faith.'
CourageSupportTrustVulnerabilityMarriage The best marriages are the ones where we can go out in the world and really put ourselves out there. A lot of times we'll fail, and sometimes we'll pull it off. But good marriages are when you can go home and know that your vulnerability will be honored as courage, and that you'll find support.
TrustAttentionHurtRelationship When the people we love stop paying attention, trust begins to slip away and hurt starts seeping in.
VulnerabilityRelationshipTrustEmotional Connection Through my research, I found that vulnerability is the glue that holds relationships together. It's the magic sauce.
ConnectionSelf-WorthAuthenticityCourageBelonging Vulnerability is the birthplace of connection and the path to the feeling of worthiness. If it doesn't feel vulnerable, the sharing is probably not constructive.
HumilityCourageGrowthExplorationExperience I'm not a parenting expert. In fact, I'm not sure that I even believe in the idea of 'parenting experts.' I'm an engaged, imperfect parent and a passionate researcher. I'm an experienced mapmaker and a stumbling traveler. Like many of you, parenting is by far my boldest and most daring adventure.
Social MediaFriendship QualityExpectationTrue FriendsLuck Social media has given us this idea that we should all have a posse of friends when in reality, if we have one or two really good friends, we are lucky.
VulnerabilityFearHappinessRiskEmotion As a vulnerability researcher, the greatest barrier I see is our low tolerance for vulnerability. We're almost afraid to be happy. We feel like it's inviting disaster.
UniquenessTransformationEmotionForgivenessHuman Condition As unique as we all are, an awful lot of us want the same things. We want to shake up our current less-than-fulfilling lives. We want to be happier, more loving, forgiving and connected with the people around us.