The world has delivered an unfair blow to my partner and I’m needed as a confidant or champion.I’ve been caught in some kind of lie (that I may or may not be aware of).

Something I don’t know about has come out and my partner is now angry with me.

I did something that has upset my partner.

In my experience, as a man, when I sense something is wrong in my relationship I rush to any of several unverified conjectures about what is wrong: We can ask, but then we have to sit back and allow the individual to be themselves. We can’t make someone else behave the way we want, or sometimes need, them to. So, we began with one another, learning to stand-in and stand-strong, while allowing our partner to experience and emerge from their own shame and struggles.

We had not gotten close enough to any of our partners in the past to push across the boundaries and limits that come with BRAVING. What we learned early on in our relationship was it’s easier to read about BRAVING. What I got as an answer for this quest is a woman who was well-read in Brene’s work and into her BRAVING concept. But Brené, being the badass she is, took on his challenge and gave us Listening To Shame – TED Talk, where she explores the relationships between men and women and their vulnerabilities.įrom these two talks, I got my Brené wisdom and went forth into the world of dating, post-divorce, in search of a vulnerable and shame-aware woman. The man went on to say, “I guess that’s pretty convenient for you, then.” It was a burn. She was touring the world on the success of this talk when a man approached her after a speech and asked her, “Why do you only research women?” She mentions in her 2nd viral TED Talk, how this question struck her to the core. When Brené Brown did her breakthrough talk on vulnerability ( The Power of Vulnerability – TED Talk), she had compiled all of her research on women. So, for me, respect for women is in my DNA. It was easy, I was raised by three strong women and one absent (alcoholic) father. From birth, I was raised with the ultimate respect for women. We are taught a gentleman opens doors, holds chairs and stand when a woman enters the room. The hard part, the brave part, as a man is to not try and fix my partner’s issue.Īs men we are trained from birth to help women.

Braving brené brown