“Let’s try a little experiment,” I said to myself this past December.

I have been dabbling with experiments in my life, a short-term thing I want to try. I did a little experiment with not watching or reading the news for two weeks. Honestly, I felt so calm and not like the world was on fire all the time that I continue to limit my news intake. 

Then I did a little social media experiment: I wasn’t on Facebook for a month. Again, it was a great feeling to be free of the burden of social media, so I took the apps off my phone. Now I only use Facebook and Instagram on my computer for a short time, every few days.

My latest experiment was to have a book club. Starting a book club was very self-serving. I wanted to read Brené Brown’s new book, Strong Ground, and I knew I wouldn’t get through it without accountability. I started a book club as a little experiment. It has worked for me. We had our book club discussion about Strong Ground, and I had 8 other women leaders read it with me. There was a chat group where I posted a question or two each week, and others, along with myself, posted their a-ha moments from the reading. 

In this post, I am sharing a few of my insights from reading Strong Ground.

The Dare to Lead Podcast

Brené Brown is one of my favorite leadership thought leaders and researchers. I have read several of her books and use her materials in my trainings. I also listen to her podcasts Unlocking Us and Dare to Lead. Brown was a consistent podcaster and started the Dare to Lead podcast in October, 2020. Then, at the end of 2022, she took a 16-month break, had a few interviews in the spring of 2024, and then nothing until last fall. 

“YES!” I shouted as a Dare to Lead podcast episode dropped last fall. It was a 9-episode series about her new book, “Strong Ground: The Lessons of Daring Leadership, the Tenacity of Paradox and the Wisdom of the Human Spirit,” which offers valuable leadership lessons. Six episodes featured Adam Grant, an organizational psychologist, and the engaging conversations between Brown and Grant provided practical insights into leadership challenges. Listening to these episodes can give you a taste of the book’s leadership concepts and inspire your own growth. 

Short Review of Strong Ground

Strong Ground is an almost 400-page read that packs in so much on leadership, both self-leadership and organizational leadership. In addition to Brown’s writings, she has guest writers discuss leadership concepts she has integrated into the Dare to Lead framework. I will need to go back through all the highlights in the book to really let it all sink in. However, I would like to discuss three sections I found key topics and tools in the book for me.

1. The Above the Line/ Below the Line Practice
2. Grounded Confidence
3. Locking In and Locking Through

The Above the Line/ Below the Line Practice

Above-the-line and below-the-line practices are not new to me. I learned about the practice twenty years ago during a restorative practices training. The Above the Line/ Below the Line mindset was like digging deep into a dusty box of trinkets that I hadn’t thought about for a while and pulling out a treasure, saying, “Oh! This one I need right now!” 

At its essence, it’s a practice where leaders build self-awareness of their mindset. Are you making decisions and responses from a below-the-line mindset that is all about fear, power over, and being “right”? Or are you making those decisions from above the line in the mindset of curiosity, power with, and open to possibilities? This video from the Conscious Leadership group explains the concept well. It’s all about pausing and recognizing where you are, above or below the line. 

Grounded Confidence

Brown’s definition of a leader is anyone, regardless of title or position, who holds themselves accountable for finding potential in people and ideas, and who has the courage to develop that potential. This inclusive view aims to inspire you to see your own leadership qualities and feel empowered to develop them further.

This section incorporates the skills from Dare to Lead (2018), her additional research from Atlas of the Heart (2021), and the many organizations her company has served. Grounded Confidence accounts for almost a third of the book’s content and is the heart of her research with organizations. Brown defines Grounded Confidence as “is a brand of confidence that is …built on solid ground of self-awareness, courage, and practice. Grounded confidence is the accepting and embracing learning and unlearning, practicing and failing, and at its core is driven by discipline and the joy of mastery.” 

Locking In and Locking Through

There are many skill-sets and mindsets needed for grounded confidence; however, one that stood out to me was the concept of Locking In and Locking Through. She especially writes about locking in and deep focus. In this section, it resonated with me because, to finish the book, I needed deep focus; however, the technology was pulling me away from the focus I needed to reach my goal. I set my phone’s timer and then set it across the room. I told myself I couldn’t touch the phone until the timer went off. It took me half the time to settle myself, and then I sat and read. 

As I read this chapter, what I learned is that your attention is like a flashlight: whenever you point it, it becomes brighter. I only have one flashlight, and on days when I try to shine the light on too many tasks in a short time span, task switching, I will start to lose integrity in any of those tasks. I will become slower, more prone to error, and worn out. As a woman of a certain age, I feel emotionally worn out more than ever on days when I ask too much of my brain by switching tasks. I plan to spend more time blocking out projects where I can have deep, intentional focus without the interruptions of other tasks. 

Brown uses personal narrative, sports metaphors, examples within an organization,  guest writers, poetry, and research to weave together the concepts she shares in the book. In the online discussion among the book club members, some of us felt it led to a disjointed reading experience and a lack of a clear path for where she was going in the book. The disjointed information was mostly at the start of the book. We also had a great discussion about the audio version vs the book. In the audiobook, Brown will go off-script at times and add some additional information. Overall, as leaders in our respective communities, we all felt that there was some value in reading the book. 

I suggest listening to the Dare to Lead podcasts before reading the book to get a feel for the content before diving in. I am happy with the book club experiment and may hold another one later in the year. I will be incorporating the Strong Ground mindsets and tools into my personal work as a leader and in my work with organizations to support them in developing a culture that brings out the best within themselves. If you would like to chat about how I can support your organization in developing a “strong ground” culture, reach out to chat!