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Image: Eugene Gologursky for Fast Company
Brené Brown, a research professor at the University of Houston, delivered a TED Talk in 2010 on the power of vulnerability that’s since been viewed nearly 70 million times, making her a self-help guru and something of a cultural icon. Since then, 150,000 leaders across the globe have taken her workshops on leading with courage. Her new book, Strong Ground, delves into lessons from these workshops.
At the 11th annual Fast Company Innovation Festival in New York on September 17, Brown discussed with senior editor Jon Gluck why we need strong leaders now more than ever. Here are her top three insights on leadership she shared at the event:
1. We’re in the middle of a collective AI panic attack—and need to take a breath.
Brown said that when it comes to AI, most CEOs are like 5-year-olds playing soccer, kicking the ball every which way, going, “Okay, what do we want to do? I don’t give a shit, just have a strategy.”
We might be in the middle of an AI wave, after all—but that doesn’t mean companies are being thoughtful or strategic about how they are deploying AI. According to research from MIT, more than 95% of AI investments are not profitable. Companies are failing to align AI investments with business strategy.
“We need to get the ball, look down the pitch strategically, take a breath, and pass the ball,” Brown said. “We’re going too fast. . . . We’re scared.”
. Real organisational transformation requires breaking things.
We’re burned out on buzzwords like transformation because most incremental changes are marketed as “transformations.” But Brown said actual, meaningful change that can reinvent companies requires “breaking shit.”
“The hardest thing about a real transformation is you’re going to need to break some shit. You’re going to need a very serious assessment of what is working in your organisation: the systems, the processes, the people,” she said. You also need a very real assessment of what’s not working, and let it go. “And what you have to put on the chopping block with transformation is some of your darlings,” Brown said.
3. Want people to listen to you? Be prepared—and honest.
Brown said she’s been told she has executive presence (a term she called a “cover for shitting on introverts and women”). But she says what others call a certain presence is really all about preparation.
Before a meeting with executives, Brown will put in hours listening to the investor calls, researching the points she doesn’t understand, and watching interviews with the CEO so she can ask incisive questions. “I try to be prepared. That may be over-functioning from being the only woman in a lot of rooms in my career,” she said. But in addition to doing her homework, she also prioritises being truthful, even if it’s unpalatable.
“I try to not give a shit whether you like me or not. I’m honest. I try to just be very truthful. And I think if people listen to what I say, maybe it’s because they trust that I’m going to tell the truth,” she said. “And if I can’t, I don’t talk.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shalene Gupta is the staff editor for Fast Company's Work Life section. She reviews contributor essays for Work Life and writes about the way we work now and how this will change in the future.