Perfectionism is a twenty-ton shield that we lug around thinking it will protect us when, in fact, it's the thing that's really preventing us from taking flight.
Bren BrownRead
When we fail to set boundaries and hold people accountable, we feel used and mistreated. This is why we sometimes attack who they are, which is far more hurtful than addressing a behavior or a choice.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Setting boundaries is crucial for healthy relationships; failing to do so leads to feelings of being mistreated.
Brené Brown emphasizes the importance of establishing boundaries in interpersonal relationships. When we neglect to set limits and fail to hold others accountable for their actions, it can lead to feelings of being taken advantage of, mistreated, or even resentful. Instead of addressing unacceptable behaviors, we may resort to attacking the person's character, which can cause more harm than good. This quote highlights the need for clear communication and mutual respect in our connections with others.
Themes
BoundariesRelationshipsAccountabilityCommunicationSelf-Care
In practice
Example use cases
In a workshop on healthy relationships, this quote can be used to illustrate the importance of setting boundaries.
More from Bren Brown
All quotes →Social media has given us this idea that we should all have a posse of friends when in reality, if we have one or two really good friends, we are lucky.
Bren BrownRead
What we know matters but who we are matters more.
Bren BrownRead
Authenticity is the daily practice of letting go of who we think we're supposed to be and embracing who we are.
Bren BrownRead
Vulnerability is the birthplace of innovation, creativity and change.
Bren BrownRead
Nostalgia is also a dangerous form of comparison. Think about how often we compare our lives to a memory that nostalgia has so completely edited that it never really existed.
Bren BrownRead
Similar quotes
There is no more effective way to radicalize American Muslim youth than for political leaders to make public displays of prejudice against all Muslims. Suspicion will undermine their sense of identification with America and alienate some from both the culture and from politics.
Miroslav VolfRead
Everybody used to talk about Chechnya as a place, in the Russian imperial and Soviet periods, that was essentially governed by extended family and regional networks that substituted for older clan structures. But those networks have been destroyed.
Fiona HillRead
Ten long trips around the sun since I last saw that smile, but only joy and thankfulness that on a tiny world in the vastness, for a couple of moments in the immensity of time, we were one.
Ann DruyanRead
Men's memoirs are about answers; women's memoirs are about questions. Most male authors want to look good in their memoirs and have a place in posterity, while most women know that posterity is what happens when you no longer care. Women want to connect with others here and now; they couldn't care less about legacy!
Isabel AllendeRead
I hope that tomorrow we can all, wherever we are, join in expressing our grief at Diana's loss, and gratitude for her all-too-short life. It is a chance to show to the whole world the British nation united in grief and respect.
Queen Elizabeth IiRead
All relationships change the brain - but most important are the intimate bonds that foster or fail us, altering the delicate circuits that shape memories, emotions and that ultimate souvenir, the self.
Diane AckermanRead