Powerful Vulnerability

The first thought that many of you reading this might have is that the title of this post is a contradiction in terms, but I assure you it's not.  It's taken me many years to realize that vulnerability and power are intrinsically linked and that the power of uncomfortable exposure and honesty can be very significant.  Two years ago I started this blog as a way to educate people about the struggle of having a speech impediment and also to give myself an outlet to talk about my journey of dealing with it.  At that time I really didn't understand how much of an outlet it would give me to not only address my speech, but to take inventory of my life in general.  I have never been a person to keep a journal or any other type of chronicle for my life, but this blog has served as a journal of sorts.  The difference is that because it's public, I felt a certain amount of pressure to make sure that the content was carefully thought out and well-written.  In a sense, that pressure is responsible for the intensity and depth of self-assessment displayed in the content.  The intensity and depth of personal development I delved into has lead me to  a pinnacle of realization that the greatest benefit of this blog has been; realizing the power of vulnerability.  Dr. Brene Brown said in her TED Talk that "Vulnerability is our most accurate measurement of courage" and I agree 

with her.  

Vulnerability vs. Weakness

Many people confuse vulnerability with weakness and I believe they couldn't be more different.  In fact I believe it takes a tremendous amount of strength to be vulnerable.  It's much easier to suppress, cover up and ignore your problems than to face them head on.  Facing your problems at the very least involves an external acknowledgment which then creates a measure of accountability to resolve that issue.  This is to essence of vulnerability to me, exposing your flaws or problems and allowing others to hold you accountable to take action.  Exposing a problem and taking action is a powerful thing to do because it gives you control over your life.  Hiding your flaws, problems, and emotions robs a person of their power and puts your issues in the driver's seat of your life.  It is my belief that a great deal of people are comfortable in that situation. People who are comfortable being out of control may not be happy with their circumstances, but may also not be unhappy enough to do the work to change it.  In any case, they will at least they have a great excuse for why they haven't achieved their goals or bothered to set any at all.  I have lived this way for many years and it may feel safe to take an acceptable refuge in your comfort zone for a while, but in the end I felt as if I cheated myself.  Getting vulnerable, taking control and putting your life into action, I have discovered, is the best way to live a life. 

Reconciling the past and Thinking Forward

I started this blog to reconcile issues from my past so that they wouldn't affect my future, even if I didn't fully realize it at the time.  I discovered that the depth of my issues were much more extensive than I initially thought.  By the time I had the idea to create a blog, I had been carrying around 20 years of emotional garbage and desperately needed a place to dump it.  While I have come to the realization that it will take more work and time to completely put the past behind me, I have come to a place of acceptance of the past and excitement about the future.  This blog has served its purpose very well and provided me with a platform to assessment my life and develop some effective strategies to improve the quality of it.  With that in mind I feel that it's time for a new medium and outlet for my new perspective.  It's time to lay this platform to rest in the same place as my past.  Thinking Forward is now my main focus and ensuring that the next 30 years of my life are vastly different from the first 30.  My past experiences will always be in clear rear view sight, but they will remain in their proper place which is in the past and not in my present or future.  Until you hear from me in again....

Think Broad & Think Forward