The VING in the BRAVING Inventory – Dare to Lead
I’ve been spending time with the concept of conscious leadership. I’ve recently revisited Brene Brown’s Dare To Lead book. She defines a leader as anyone who takes responsibility for finding the potential in people and processes and has the courage to develop that potential. To do this one needs to be aware, present and committed. In other words, conscious. I’ll be unpacking Brene’s concepts in this series. Today, we’ll talk about braving trust by unpacking the VING of the BRAVING inventory.
Overview:
Brene outlines daring (conscious) leadership as a collection of four skill sets that are 100% teachable, observable, and measurable. She begins with the foundational skill set. The foundational skill set of courage-building is “rumbling with vulnerability.” The other three skill sets: Living into Our Values Braving Trust and Learning to Rise.
“Must have” in a ‘must-avoid’ environment:
Since most of us, avoid talking about trust, then what are we to do to solve it? Taking the BRAVING Inventory is a recommended step. BRAVING is an acronym that comprises the behaviors that define trust. It’s a great rumbling tool. Boundaries, Reliability, Accountability, Vault, Integrity, Non-judgement and Generosity. I discussed the B-R-A last week.
V is for Vault:
I love this concept. This notion, Brown shares, is when you don’t share information or experiences that are not yours to share. You need to know that your confidences are kept and that you are not sharing any information about other people, or in general, that should be kept confidential. It’s this second aspect of the vault that is often new to people, i.e. sharing what is not yours to share. Even if it’s a mundane piece of information, like what you did for the weekend (aside from watching the New England Patriots win AGAIN) it can erode trust. I have a friend who likes to overshare, about me. I learned this from another mutual acquaintance that reiterated a story that I had only shared with my friend. It was no big deal, or was it? This signaled to me that if I want to keep anything confidential that I shouldn’t share it with my friend. More importantly, it was a great opportunity to have a conversation about trust.
I is for Integrity:
Integrity means different things to different people. For me, it’s doing the right thing in all situations regardless if anyone is watching. It’s listening to my soul, in all things and living my values. Brown describes it as “choosing courage over comfort, what is right what is fun, fast or easy. You choose to practice your values rather than simply talking about them.” Walk the talk, people.
N is for Non-judgement:
I recently saw a quote from Carl Jung, on Facebook, that said: “thinking is difficult, that is why most people judge.” BOOM! Non-judgement applied in the BRAVING Inventory context means that you ask for what you need, and the person you are engaging with does the same. You can talk without judgment. You can ask for help without judgment. Our brains are constantly assessing, as one of my teachers says, ‘yum’ or ‘yuck’. Therefore, the key is to notice this and get curious about the other person’s model of the world.
G is for Generosity:
Brown guides that you extend the most generous interpretation possible to the intentions, words, and actions of others. A common definition of generous is showing a readiness to give more of something, like money or time, than is strictly necessary or expected. I’ve seen this notion applied as ‘seek to understand’ and ‘assume the best intention’. How can you be generous with your interpretations?
I dare you to lead! We only have a finite amount of time on this planet, and you can choose how to spend that time. Is it hard for you to trust yourself, others? It would be amazing to rumble with trust and allow yourself the time and space to explore how this may be helping or hurting your career. Anoush Shafique, Director of the London School of Economics shares “In the past jobs were about muscles, now they are about brains, but in the future, they will be about the heart.”
Are you ready?: Press HERE for Success
I wish you much success in your career quest. Yours in balance, learning, growth, and harmony. – Melissa DeLuca, CEO
