For over a decade, Brené Brown has found a special place in our hearts as a gifted mapmaker and a fellow traveler. She is both a social scientist and a kitchen-table friend whom you can always count on to tell the truth, make you laugh, and, on occasion, cry with you. And what's now become a movement all started with The Gifts of Imperfection, which has sold more than two million copies in thirty-five different languages across the globe.
What transforms this book from words on a page to effective daily practices are the ten guideposts to wholehearted living. The guideposts not only help us understand the practices that will allow us to change our lives and families, they also walk us through the unattainable and sabotaging expectations that get in the way.
Brené writes, "This book is an invitation to join a wholehearted revolution. A small, quiet, grassroots movement that starts with each of us saying, 'My story matters because I matter.' Revolution might sound a little dramatic, but in this world, choosing authenticity and worthiness is an absolute act of resistance."
Brené has spent the past two decades studying courage, vulnerability, shame, and empathy. She is the author of six #1 New York Times best sellers and is the host of two award-winning podcasts, Unlocking Us and Dare to Lead.
Brené's books have been translated into more than 30 languages, and her titles include Atlas of the Heart, Dare to Lead, Braving the Wilderness, Rising Strong, Daring Greatly, and The Gifts of Imperfection. With Tarana Burke, she co-edited the best-selling anthology You Are Your Best Thing: Vulnerability, Shame Resilience, and the Black Experience.
Brené's TED talk on the Power of Vulnerability is one of the top five most-viewed TED talks in the world, with over 60 million views. She spends most of her time working in organizations around the world, helping develop braver leaders and more courageous cultures. In 2024, she was named as the executive director of The Center for Daring Leadership at BetterUp.
She lives in Houston, Texas, with her husband, Steve. They have two children, Ellen and Charlie, and a weird Bichon named Lucy.
"[This book] is just phenomenal... she has just this incredible way of talking about things that other people don’t talk about, like shame and how to deal with the things you’re not good at, and how to be intellectually honest and admit when you don’t know things. I love her work."
writer, failed housekeeper, reformed cattle rustler AND Georgia Author of the Year for Oh My Stars & Bless Her Heart she/her
I read The Gifts of Imperfection by Brené Brown https://t.co/W8qW8ij1Hm
Writer, editor, tutor. Love Agatha Christie, Red Dwarf and Dr Who. Lez. Neurodivergent. Lecturer in Creative Writing for Brighton and the Open University. 🌈
@tjcarlisle Brené Brown recommends a form of note taking at the start of the new edition of The Gifts of Imperfection, which sounds like the polar opposite side of this. I’ll see if I can find the reference.