COMMUNITY

What do we do with our weaknesses? Naturally, we want protect them at all costs.

On this side of the world, we’re taught not to show our weakness(es) or our enemies will use them against us. We learn to hide them, change them if we can help it, or overcompensate with our strengths. When we can’t do any of those things, we’re left vulnerable, and that can feel isolating, debilitating, heartbreaking.

I often wrestle with the duality of being weak and being strong. Being good at some things, not so good at others. Succeeding, failing… I’ve also watched the people I admire gracefully expose their weaknesses, fearlessly letting themselves be human because being human is being, both, strong and vulnerable.

Weakness is an opportunity to accept life’s limitations, to learn, to mature, to partner with those who understand and those who complement us. And when we let people in to see our vulnerability, it opens the door for community.

There are more than 8 billion people in the world who can relate to our experiences with weakness and strength and all of the things in between. That makes a lifetime of over 8 billion opportunities to connect with someone and see that we really don’t have to hide what makes us vulnerable because our humanity is our greatest strength.