{"id":121356,"date":"2024-01-18T15:22:00","date_gmt":"2024-01-18T19:22:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=121356"},"modified":"2026-04-28T16:25:20","modified_gmt":"2026-04-28T20:25:20","slug":"brene-brown-trust-braving","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/brene-brown-trust-braving\/","title":{"rendered":"Bren\u00e9 Brown on Trust: BRAVING Your Way Forward"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What does Bren\u00e9 Brown’s BRAVING acronym stand for? Why is trusting yourself<\/a> essential for good relationships?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Building trust<\/a> is a key way to staying true to yourself<\/a>. Trusting yourself as well as others helps you express your true self<\/a> and avoid lashing out at others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let’s explore this concept by diving into an acronym coined by Bren\u00e9 Brown on trust BRAVING.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Build Trust With Yourself<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

To understand what building trust looks like in practice, we\u2019ll explain each of these elements using an acronym by Bren\u00e9 Brown for trust: BRAVING.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Boundaries:<\/strong> When you trust yourself<\/a>, you know when to draw the line at physical and emotional safety<\/a> during a disagreement. When you trust other people\u2019s boundaries, you know that they\u2019ll do the same.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reliability: <\/strong>When you\u2019re reliable, people can trust that you\u2019ll always be honest and won\u2019t pretend to conform for ease. They know that you always show up as your authentic self. People should also be able to trust that you\u2019re reliable because you don\u2019t present them<\/em> with false dichotomies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Accountability: <\/strong>If you\u2019re trustworthy, you take accountability when you mess up by not being authentic or not engaging in conflict resolution<\/a> in good faith. In those cases, you show accountability by apologizing and trying again. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vault<\/strong>: You keep things confidential when you say you will\u2014even if you\u2019re tempted to connect with people through gossip or shared contempt. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Integrity:<\/strong> When you have integrity, you always live out your values, even when it\u2019s more challenging than conforming. This is an important part of calling out false dichotomies and being honest with others. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nonjudgment<\/strong>: In order for people to trust you with their <\/em>truth, you have to listen to them without judgment. Likewise, to trust yourself, you have be nonjudgmental toward yourself even when you feel different or \u201cothered.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Generosity: <\/strong>When people trust you, they know that when you ask more questions to understand their perspective, you\u2019re assuming generous (good) intentions and you\u2019re approaching the conversation with kindness. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Examining Brown\u2019s Signature Acronym<\/strong>

Brown first described her acronym BRAVING in her video \u201cThe Anatomy of Trust\u201d<\/a> on Oprah Winfrey\u2019s SuperSoul Sessions<\/em>. Since then, Brown has included the concept in multiple books, applying the multifaceted definition of trust to different areas of her research, such as leadership, vulnerability, and overcoming shame<\/a>. For example, in Dare to Lead<\/em><\/a>, she asserts that trust is essential for leaders and organizations<\/a>, as it allows people to feel comfortable trying new ideas and relying on others. Likewise, in Rising Strong<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>she presents BRAVING as a helpful tool to recover from emotional setbacks<\/a> and embrace your authentic self. 

BRAVING seems to be widely applicable, whether in relationships<\/a> or in a business context<\/a>, because it encompasses several small behaviors and actions that make it easier to understand how you might improve (or worsen) trust\u2014a concept that can seem nebulous. While other definitions of trust<\/a> tend to center around reliability and truthfulness, BRAVING includes traits that are less often associated with trust but still affect it. 

For example, you may have a general feeling that you don\u2019t feel comfortable being yourself around someone, and Brown would likely classify this as a trust issue, while others might consider it unrelated to trust. The BRAVING acronym enables you to break down the feeling of discomfort into the other person\u2019s concrete actions that made you distrust them. For instance, the other person might tend to judge you when you\u2019re being honest with them, so you don\u2019t feel like you can be open.  <\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What does Bren\u00e9 Brown’s BRAVING acronym stand for? Why is trusting yourself essential for good relationships? Building trust is a key way to staying true to yourself. Trusting yourself as well as others helps you express your true self and avoid lashing out at others. Let’s explore this concept by diving into an acronym coined by Bren\u00e9 Brown on trust BRAVING.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":88244,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[34,33,43],"tags":[1374],"class_list":["post-121356","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-communication","category-people","category-self-improvement","tag-braving-the-wilderness","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"\nBren\u00e9 Brown on Trust: BRAVING Your Way Forward - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"According to Bren\u00e9 Brown, BRAVING is a trust acronym that can be used to form better relationships with yourself and others. 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