Rising Strong

How the Ability to Reset Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead

By: Brené Brown

Narrated by: Brené Brown

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • When we deny our stories, they define us. When we own our stories, we get to write the ending.

Don’t miss the five-part Max docuseries Brené Brown: Atlas of the Heart!

Social scientist Brené Brown has ignited a global conversation on courage, vulnerability, shame, and worthiness. Her pioneering work uncovered a profound truth: Vulnerability—the willingness to show up and be seen with no guarantee of outcome—is the only path to more love, belonging, creativity, and joy. But living a brave life is not always easy: We are, inevitably, going to stumble and fall.

It is the rise from falling that Brown takes as her subject in Rising Strong. As a grounded theory researcher, Brown has listened as a range of people—from leaders in Fortune 500 companies and the military to artists, couples in long-term relationships, teachers, and parents—shared their stories of being brave, falling, and getting back up. She asked herself, What do these people with strong and loving relationships, leaders nurturing creativity, artists pushing innovation, and clergy walking with people through faith and mystery have in common? The answer was clear: They recognize the power of emotion and they’re not afraid to lean in to discomfort.

Walking into our stories of hurt can feel dangerous. But the process of regaining our footing in the midst of struggle is where our courage is tested and our values are forged. Our stories of struggle can be big ones, like the loss of a job or the end of a relationship, or smaller ones, like a conflict with a friend or colleague. Regardless of magnitude or circumstance, the rising strong process is the same: We reckon with our emotions and get curious about what we’re feeling; we rumble with our stories until we get to a place of truth; and we live this process, every day, until it becomes a practice and creates nothing short of a revolution in our lives. Rising strong after a fall is how we cultivate wholeheartedness. It’s the process, Brown writes, that teaches us the most about who we are.

ONE OF GREATER GOOD’S FAVORITE BOOKS OF THE YEAR

“[Brené Brown’s] research and work have given us a new vocabulary, a way to talk with each other about the ideas and feelings and fears we’ve all had but haven’t quite known how to articulate. . . . Brené empowers us each to be a little more courageous.”—The Huffington Post

Critic reviews

“In a world filled with rejection letters . . . Rising Strong can help your graduate make the most out of [their] failures.”—Bustle

“[Brené Brown’s] research and work have given us a new vocabulary, a way to talk with each other about the ideas and feelings and fears we’ve all had but haven’t quite known how to articulate. . . . Brené empowers us each to be a little more courageous.”—The Huffington Post

“With a fresh perspective that marries research and humor, Brown offers compassion while delivering thought-provoking ideas about relationships—with others and with oneself.”—Publishers Weekly

“It is inevitable—we will fall. We will fail. We will not know how to react or what to do. No matter how or when it happens, we will all have a choice—do we get up or not? Thankfully, Brené Brown is there with an outstretched arm to help us up.”—Simon Sinek, author of Start with Why and Leaders Eat Last

Brings me to tears of joy and humility

I love Brené so much. I cannot express to you how tremendously each and every one of her books has changed the way I interface with the world, and maybe more importantly how I interface with myself. I have told beautiful snippets to my family, friends, and patients, and even through my halting imperfect story-telling I’ve seen their eyes light up in that a-Ha moment, and thought yes yes that’s what I have been feeling all this time. Thank you Brené. The stuff you teach me has been the most important stuff I’ve read in my lifetime. Now I’ll probably re-read all of it as I continue to try to be vulnerable and courageous.

Brené Brown is simply brilliant.

I want to be all Brené teaches when I grow up someday. As I psych major and human behavior junky, I have made this book my study manual. However, anyone can benefit from the raw truth and brilliance of her work. We all can be more vulnerable, open, trusting, and authentic in our relationships with others. This book is an amazing tool on how to achieve that in our lives.

Great read!

Great read! Just what I expected from all the other books of hers I have read, very educational and well put together.

Love!!!

Love this and love how I seemed to have listened to it when I meeded it the most!

Dare to read

One of the most moving and disrupters reads of my life! Helped me overcome my fears and love the rumble as a everyday practice.. extremely recommended