The Value and Balance of Being Vulnerable

A Great Lesson About Being Vulnerable

I was having a conversation with someone the other day and the topic lingered on my mind well into the day.  Vulnerability was not the specific topic of discussion but that was the gist of it.  Later in the afternoon I started a discussion online and the response was not what I expected.

What Did I Expect?

In all honesty, I wasn’t expecting people to open up about being vulnerable and how vulnerability has played out in their lives.  Afterall, it put them in the very position of vulnerability that many people go out of their way to avoid.  I was floored (in a good way) and fascinated by the personal declarations and admitted insecurities and above all honest feedback.  I so appreciated the dialogue because I personally know how hard it is to open up to others.

We all know the perilous side of vulnerability rooted in the fear of “something.”  But little do we talk about the value of vulnerability and the balance that it adds to our lives.

Let’s Talk About the Value of Vulnerability

From the standpoint of asking for help, people have indicated that they don’t ask for help because they have been independent for so long or have been raised to be independent and thus asking for help is difficult.  People have also stated or implied that needing help or asking for help will somehow cause people to view them as being weak.  My heart aches to think about what society has done to us to a point where it’s looked upon unfavorably to ask for help.

How about considering that by asking for what you want or need, you stand a greater chance of getting it if you speak up.  It may be somewhat uncomfortable but who among us does not face being uncomfortable from time to time?

More importantly than getting the help that we need, vulnerability conveys both the human and compassionate side of us.  It suggests that we feel or have feelings and that’s we’re not heartless robots.  Has compassion become a liability in today’s world.