The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene`Brown

Thank you to those new people who logged on to see the post on “Craft A Life You Love, by Amy Tangerine. The book had a good story and good message that has application to gaining insight into inspiration and creativity.

I also like the book “The Art of Memoir, by Mary Karr”. It’s focus is on writing and a the love of literature but it still reveals a lot about what real passion for one’s craft or work is. Right at the beginning she says that “there is a place in hell for writers that quote themselves………….”  It worries me! It was a great book.  Her love of writing just shines through the message.

Brene` Brown is a well-known author.  She comes across very polished as does her book.  The Gifts of Imperfection, Let Go of Who You Think Your're Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are, Your Guide To A Wholehearted Life, by Brene` Brown. 

The book is very well done. In some ways I would call it polished.  Dr. Brown seems polished too. It put me off a little, at first.

I have read so many self-help books that they tend to blur together. Remembering her talking on "Ted talks", giving a flawless presentation, just reminded me that the subject of personal imperfections just doesn’t have solutions that can be presented with such polish.

Her book started out to quickly take her out of the world of research she had spent so many years in, and bring her to the same table with those many folks who had such personal struggles with self-doubt and identity. She needed and obtained common ground with the problems she discussed. 

In the preface of her book she said:

 “How much we know and understand ourselves is critically important, but there is something that is even more essential to living a “Wholeharted life”: loving ourselves.”

She presented her own version of re-inventing herself, to tell her story, and this is the book that resulted from that.  She suggested that love and compassion were the keys to the change but early in the book talked about the challenging reality of digging into those type of subjects.

I liked her finding and comment that we only can love others to the degree that we love ourselves.

I thought this finding was interesting in that it verifies how insightful many of the scriptures are. Both the books of Matthew and Mark talk about the two greatest commandments. First, to love the Lord, and the second was, "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. Loving your neighbor, according to this advice, needs to follow having learned to love yourself first.  This was an important part of Dr. Browns message, and her findings also.

I liked her comments on how we define our self. She observed that people struggle with the question often asked, “What do you do”?  She said offering a simple answer just for the sake of the one asking it, was and is, unfair. Her approach of instead saying “How much time do you have?” was great.

I also liked the idea of offering a series of answers since we are all somewhat complicated. If it were me answering I might say that I am a Thinker/Reader/Writer/Entrepreneur/Business Owner/Business Executive/Lover of a good movie/the Utah Jazz/ and a night out. This answer works for me.

Reading her book softened the perception I had of Brene` Brown. Her insight was real and based on hard work on her part.

 I don’t think there is any one book on self-improvement that I would say is the solution. She talked about her point in time when her imperfections forced her to look in the mirror. The right book might do that for you. If it is the right 20th book that is ok too.

Click on the link. Go to Amazon and buy her book.  Check out our Books Tab and our Arts and Creativity Tab