30 Days of Genius- Brené Brown

Brené Brown's words are in bold. My comments are in italics.

• The only thing I know for sure about being courageous is that if you’re brave enough often enough- you’re gonna fail (this is not just a guarantee. It’s a determined fact)
• Echoing Seth Godin, Brené reminds herself that failure is an inevitable part of success. High risk, high reward. Reminding yourself that failure is an inevitable part of courage will make it less hurtful and less of a blockade when you do fail. And don't worry- you certainly will.

• "It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." 
• Umm, okay best quote ever. Be in the arena. Go strive and achieve and fall and be defeated. Because the sidelines are safe and boring. The arena- where gladiators produce music or create art or start businesses- is where the successes come. And ~side note~ it's also whre all the fun hangs out.

• "What is actually going on here? What am I feeling, what do I know for sure?"
• It is important to ask yourself these questions before acting and before judging. Too often we extrapolate the very few facts we do know into an baseless emotional cascade. When noticing any emotion within ourselves- fear, discomfort, joy- think about what you know, and decide if your emotions are justified. 

• There is a physiological response to emotion. All you need to do is get curious about it.
• Are your emotions making you sweat in nervousness? Shake in anger? Curl up in fear? Think about what your body is doing, and ask yourself why. Don't let emotions control your body without you understanding what is happening first. Be curious, as with everything else.

• What story are you telling yourself?
• Referencing the last two comments- what are you making up based off of what little you know? What is the story you are making up about yourself? Is it about your inability to do good work? About your lack of worth as a friend or partner? Recognize it, then think about where it's coming from and if it has any merit.

• If you own the story, you can write the ending
• Once you can recognize the story, you can control it. Mad at yourself? Change your mindset. Think that your manager hates you? Find the facts that make you think that, or come up to her and discuss the facts that you know and make you feel such. 

• You’ve got something that only you can bring to the world
• Don't be someone else. Take advantage of the fact that you're the only person in the history of the world who has your set of experiences. Embrace that. Use that.

• He or she who has the greatest capacity for discomfort rises the fastest
• Similar to Tim Ferriss' Comfort Challenges where he asks his readers to do things that will make them uncomfortable (ask for 10% off at the coffee shop, ask two people for their phone numbers). Recognize that if you can handle the most difficult situations, you can rise through them the easiest. 

• The only thing that experience gives you is a little grace that whispers in your ear “you’ve been in the dark before, you know your way through. Stay in the dark."
• Experience doesn't make you infallible. It simply means that you understand yourself well enough to know there are dark times, and there is no success without struggle.

• "You will fail."
• Remind yourself again and again- you will fail. And that is an essential ingredient to success and great work. This is not putting yourself down- it's motivating yourself through the positivity of knowing the future.

• "The best ideas can only be born with very trusting midwives."
• Create a safe environment in which to experiment and share ideas. You need partners who are risk takers and supportive. Every team member should be relied upon to be supportive of all others and brave enough to speak their mind.

That's a lot of notes. I guess I liked what Brené had to say.