What I’m Reading Now: Dare to Lead

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I’m not sure why I’m just now getting around to reading a book by Brene Brown. I’ve had her book, The Gifts of Imperfection, on my to-read list for quite a while. It keeps slipping back, though, as I found other enthusiasms to read first.

I decided to buy and read Dare to Lead: Brave Work, Tough Conversations, Whole Hearts because I came across her definition of leadership and it resonated with me. Here it is.

“I define a leader as anyone who takes responsibility for finding the potential in people and processes and who has the courage to develop that potential.”

So, what am I worried about? Brown writes about why leaders should be vulnerable. It’s important to be vulnerable. You can’t be courageous unless you can be hurt. But I also think that you don’t want to be open about everything with everyone all the time. You must have some boundaries. You must have some ground rules.

Leaders have two jobs. Leaders use their behavior to influence others to work together to accomplish a mission. Leaders care for their teammates and help them grow, develop, and succeed. Some of that work is hard-edged. I worry that Dare to Lead will do a good job on vulnerability and skip over the hard-edged parts of leadership.

So, have you read Dare to Lead or any of Brene Brown’s other books? What did you like? What should I beware of?

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