Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone

“Let go of who you think you are supposed to be; embrace who you are.” – Brene Brown

Braving The Wilderness emphasizes the importance of being true to yourself. One would find themselves in the wilderness when we live by our values and stay true to who we are as opposed to other people and groups we would want to have in our lives. When there is a clash of the values, there is also a risk that we will be need to stand alone if we are to stand tall and stay true to who we really are. Often, we think that in order to be accepted, we need to fit in. Standing up and being who we are takes courage. But it also makes us vulnerable as we risk to stand alone. The underlying message of this book is to have courage to remain authentic to who you really are. There are important lessons offering a wisdom to stand tall:

1.       Be who you are and celebrate your authenticity

It is important to remain true to who we are. There is not much point in seeking to fit in where we don’t really belong.

2.       Standing tall requires courage.

To have courage to go your own way is underpinned by the trust in yourself and others.  We all have the need to feel the sense of belonging. But to belong, we need to master trust. There are seven traits that allow us to build up courage to trust ourselves and others. 

2.1   Be reliable. You need to keep your agreements.

2.2   Own your mistakes. We all make mistakes. It is important to recognize and acknowledge when we make mistake, apologize, learn from it and make the mends. 

2.3   Respect boundaries. You need to understand who far you can go. Do not cross the line.

2.4   Protect secrets. You need to be able to keep secrets when someone confides in you.

2.5   Be a person of integrity. Always make your decisions based on your values and do what is right.

2.6   Stop judging. Rather than to judge others, aim to show compassion and be curious to learn more about them.

2.7   Be generous. It is important to help others in whichever way you can.

3.       It is important to recognize and acknowledge when we are angry.

Whilst anger is not the most positive and uplifting emotion, it can spur us to improve and become a better version of ourselves.