Vulnerability is the birthplace of innovation, creativity and change.

This line is widely circulated from Brené Brown’s work on shame resilience and wholehearted living, where she argues that meaningful connection and creative risk require emotional exposure. Brown developed these ideas through qualitative research (interviews and grounded-theory analysis) on shame, vulnerability, and belonging, and she popularized them in public talks and books aimed at translating research into everyday practice. The quote is typically used in the context of leadership, organizational culture, and personal growth: it frames vulnerability not as weakness but as the necessary condition for trying new things, tolerating uncertainty, and learning from failure—preconditions for innovation and change.

The quote reframes vulnerability—often treated as weakness—as the generative condition for growth. Innovation and creativity require stepping into uncertainty: proposing untested ideas, admitting what one doesn’t know, and tolerating the possibility of rejection or failure. “Birthplace” suggests that change is not merely accompanied by vulnerability but originates in it; without openness and emotional risk, people default to self-protection, conformity, and stagnation. In Brown’s broader framework, vulnerability is paired with courage: the willingness to be seen and to act without guarantees. The line therefore functions as both a psychological insight and a practical ethic for individuals and groups seeking transformation.