QuoteProject
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.
Bren Brown
ShareWTF𝕏

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

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
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

It's easier to be faithful to a restaurant than it is to a woman.
Federico FelliniRead
It is very, very, very difficult for an American actor who wants a film career to be open about his sexuality. And even more difficult for a woman if she's lesbian. It`s very distressing to me that that should be the case. The film industry is very old fashioned in California.
Ian MckellenRead
I cannot love thee; thou 'rt worse than thy brother. Go, say thy prayers, child, and ask God's pardon. I doubt thy mother and I must rue that we ever reared thee!
Emily BronteRead
She's the sort of woman who lives for others - you can tell the others by their hunted expression.
C. S. LewisRead
In my memoir, I wanted to introduce American women to Iranian women and our lives. I'm not from the highest echelons of society, nor the lowest. I'm a woman who is a lawyer, who is a professor at a university, who won the Nobel Peace Prize. At the same time, I cook. And even when I'm about to go to prison, one of the first things I do is to make enough food and put it in the fridge for my family.
Shirin EbadiRead
You just wish sometimes that people would treat you like a human being rather than seeing your gender first and who you are second.
Frances O'GradyRead

A little wisdom, now and then

Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.