In an insightful conversation on the HBR IdeaCast, renowned researcher and author Brené Brown delves into the challenges of leadership in today’s volatile and uncertain world. Brown, known widely for her groundbreaking work on vulnerability and courage, shares wisdom from her latest book, *Strong Ground: The Lessons of Daring Leadership, the Tenacity of Paradox, and the Wisdom of the Human Spirit*. The discussion, hosted by Adi Ignatius and Alison Beard, explores how leaders can remain grounded, authentic, and effective amid instability and societal disconnection.
Brown begins by acknowledging the unprecedented volatility characterizing our times—a landscape marked by rapid shifts and unpredictability that disrupt even short-term forecasting. She likens current leadership challenges to a sports metaphor involving her young children playing soccer: balls come flying unpredictably and leaders often react hastily, making quick, non-strategic decisions driven by scarcity and fear rather than skillful anticipation and thoughtful action. Instead of “settling the ball” — a football term she embraces — leaders must learn to pause, assess the environment strategically, and act with intention.
This metaphor highlights a core tension in leadership today: the need for urgency versus the necessity of thoughtful systems thinking. While some advocate for fast decision-making to avoid paralysis in uncertainty, Brown emphasizes the importance of “productive urgency” — a sense of speed balanced with strategic risk-taking and holistic consideration of consequences. She underscores the value of systems theory, noting that effective leadership requires permeable boundaries within organizations to allow feedback, recalibration, and alignment. When leaders close themselves off out of fear or scarcity, systems become self-referential and lose effectiveness, especially in complex areas like artificial intelligence strategy, where rushed implementations often fail to produce positive returns.
The conversation then turns to authenticity and values-based leadership in a politically polarized environment. Brown argues that true values are immutable and should not shift with changing administrations or external pressures. When companies abandon core values like sustainability or diversity because they become controversial, it reveals those commitments were more performative than authentic. Leaders who stand firm on values, despite external backlash, demonstrate integrity and build long-term trust, whereas those who waver may face consumer and employee disengagement.
Brown introduces the central theme of her book—“strong ground.” This concept emerged from a personal experience with injury and physical training, where a coach urged her to “find your ground.” Beyond literal footing, strong ground symbolizes a leader’s foundation in their values, mission, and purpose, providing both stability and agility. In today’s fast-paced, uncertain world, leaders must cultivate this grounded stance to resist being swept off balance by external forces. Brown draws a parallel to the “tushpush” play in American football, a coordinated, forceful team effort grounded in physics. Just as players must plant their feet firmly to generate power, organizations must root themselves in shared values and clear goals to move forward effectively.
One of the most compelling ideas Brown shares is the notion of “pocket presence,” borrowed from football quarterbacks who operate with split-second timing and situational awareness under pressure. Unlike vague concepts like “executive presence,” pocket presence is observable, measurable, and teachable. It encompasses three crucial abilities: anticipatory thinking (predicting where opportunities and threats will emerge), temporal awareness (accurately perceiving how much time is available to act), and situational awareness (understanding the broader organizational and geopolitical context). Developing this collective competency enables leaders and teams to respond nimbly and strategically in high-pressure moments.
Brown also addresses how leaders cultivate the pattern recognition skills essential to pocket presence. Drawing on her extensive research with transformational leaders, she explains that intuition is not mystical but a cognitive process where the mind rapidly filters through past experiences to identify familiar patterns and effective responses. This capability grows through deliberate learning, especially by openly discussing failures and setbacks to embed lessons into organizational memory. Such reflective practices create a mental “file system” that sharpens intuition over time.
A particularly resonant part of the discussion focuses on “armor” — the defensive behaviors leaders adopt to protect themselves from fear and uncertainty. Brown reveals that fear itself is not the enemy of courageous leadership; rather, it is the armor people put on to avoid feeling vulnerable that impedes authentic decision-making and connection. Leaders must develop emotional awareness to recognize when they are armoring up—whether through intensity, micromanagement, or perfectionism—and courageously work to shed these defenses. This process requires self-reflection, trusted feedback, and a willingness