There’s Strength in Vulnerability: Find out how this book helped MBO Partners’ CEO in his self-acceptance journey! [Fridays: Mindfulness by Miles]
Miles Everson’s Business Builder Daily speaks to the heart of what great marketers, business leaders, and other professionals need to succeed in advertising, communications, managing their investments, career strategy, and more.
A Note from Miles Everson:
Welcome to today’s edition of “Mindfulness by Miles!”
Each Friday, I am sharing my insights on a topic or event that I find useful in my everyday business life and personal life. My hope is that my own experiences and interests will help you live a rewarding life as well.
In this article, I am talking about my “book of the month.” Personally, I have a passion for learning and making reading a priority.
Books challenge us to expand our worldviews and reflect on what we hold to be true. That’s why today, I’m giving you a specific read that will challenge and change how you see vulnerability.
Keep reading to find out how being vulnerable can actually be an act of courage. May you find today’s topic insightful and helpful!
Miles Everson
CEO, MBO Partners
Chairman of the Advisory Board, The I Institute
Mindfulness by Miles
Vulnerability is a state of emotional exposure that involves a person’s willingness to accept the risk that comes from being open to others.
According to health and wellness website Verywell Mind, the fear of vulnerability is common among people. Many associate this emotional state with feeling weak and helpless.
However, being vulnerable is not negative. Once you understand the core of this emotion, you’ll see that it is also an important measure of courage that allows people to accept who they are.
It also helps foster authenticity, belongingness, and love.
—
According to Miles Everson, CEO of MBO Partners, almost no one likes to feel vulnerable. This is because feeling exposed or uncertain puts an extreme amount of emotional pressure on an individual.
He says whenever people feel vulnerable, many fall into the trap of associating this feeling with being weak or helpless. These emotions can then cause some individuals to make rash decisions that won’t help them in the long run.
These are the feelings and outcomes that Everson personally tries so hard to avoid. However, he admits it’s hard to not feel vulnerable at times.
So, when he saw author Brené Brown’s book—“Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead”—on a local bookshop shelf, he quickly bought it.
Everson says one of the reasons why he didn’t hesitate to buy this book is because he has some background knowledge about Brown’s work. As a researcher, professor, author, and podcast host, she uses 12 years of research and experience to dispel the cultural myth that vulnerability is weakness.
In her book, Brown actually suggests that vulnerability is the most accurate measure of courage. It leads people to experience important emotional benefits such as:
- Greater strength
- Stronger relationships
- Improved self-acceptance
To Everson, these are the things that captured his attention the most.
As a business builder himself, he learned that being a good leader requires having a brave face even in difficult times.
However, he also learned throughout the years that honesty is another key part of being a good and successful leader. By “honesty,” he means being able to embrace vulnerability because it’s a huge part of telling the truth.
He believes that to be the kind of leader people can follow, he needs to be strong in the face of hard times.
BUT!
He also needs to be transparent, even if it means exposing his or his company’s weaknesses, because that’s what will make him and his firm stronger and better.
Everson says by reading Brown’s book, he discovered new ways to allow himself to be vulnerable without actually feeling weak.
His other favorite part in the book was when Brown said that vulnerability is the secret to a successful, happy life. She wrote:
“When we shut ourselves off from vulnerability, we distance ourselves from the experiences that bring purpose and meaning to our lives.”
This statement is an eye-opener for Everson because now, he uses his vulnerability to take a step back and examine how he is viewing his current life. This self-reflection also enables him to use vulnerability as a tool to evaluate why he sees himself or his situation negatively.
Another one of Everson’s highlights after reading Brown’s book?
Learning to accept his true self!
In the book, Brown encourages readers to ask themselves why they are associating negative feelings with themselves. The author states that instead of feeling badly, people should learn to accept who they are and strive to turn themselves into better human beings.
According to Everson, these insights greatly challenged him to put into practice a new vision for letting his true self be seen.
—
Like what Everson said in his note today, reading enables people to expand how they see the world.
This is why he recommends great books like Brené Brown’s because he believes these written works help individuals reevaluate how they view a normal human experience. Additionally, he says these books help readers question unnecessary, longstanding societal beliefs and develop a new point of view.
His advice?
To grow or find new and more successful ways to work, people sometimes have to break free from their long-held (and maybe blurred) beliefs! This will lead them to more opportunities to become a better version of themselves.
So, if you’re ready to make some serious changes within yourself and change how you see the world, including your strengths and weaknesses, read Brown’s book!
… and like Everson, may this masterpiece inspire you to “dare greatly and have the courage to become vulnerable.”
Have an awesome day ahead!
(This article is from The Business Builder Daily, a newsletter by The I Institute in collaboration with MBO Partners.)
About The Dynamic Marketing Communiqué’s
“Fridays: Mindfulness by Miles”
High-performance businesses are run by people who think and act differently.
In other words, these are people who are high-performing individuals.
Companies and individuals of this kind have found ways to escape the grind of commoditization and competition by focusing on the RIGHT goals.
High-performing businesses and individuals are also “return driven” businesses and “career driven” individuals. They conscientiously develop unique capabilities and resources that allow them to deliver offerings in ways no other firm or individual can.
Every Friday, we’ll publish tips and insights from MBO Partners and The I Institute’s “The Business Builder Daily” newsletter.
These will help you gain knowledge on the things that Miles Everson, the CEO of MBO Partners, often talks about regarding the future of the workforce.
We’ll also highlight other mindfulness advice on how you can be a high-performing individual both in your career and personal life.
Hope you’ve found this week’s insight interesting and helpful.
Stay tuned for next Friday’s “Mindfulness by Miles!”
Cheers,
Kyle Yu
Head of Marketing
Valens Dynamic Marketing Capabilities
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www.valens-research.com
