Vulnerability as a Strength

Do some word association with me right now: what comes to mind when you hear “vulnerability?” You probably don’t associate it with strength, right? In reality, you probably tie it to the opposite.

But what if the concept of “vulnerability” is, in fact, strong for people?

It well might be.

This is an awesome article about vulnerability — featuring a cool story about DARPA and the release of red balloons that I suggest you read — and this part pops out:

We think about trust and vulnerability the way we think about standing on solid ground and leaping into the unknown. First we build trust, then we leap. But science is showing we’ve got it backward. Vulnerability doesn’t come after trust — it precedes it. Leaping into the unknown, when done alongside others, causes the solid ground of trust to materialize beneath our feet.

Think on that: vulnerability precedes trust. When we leap into the unknown alongside others, solid ground appears.

I feel like this is actually somewhat normative and commonplace at work, although we don’t love to admit it. When you’re on a team where people are open and honest and show vulnerabilities (“Hey, I’m nervous about this project”), it fosters much more of a sense of team, community, context, and collaboration.