The Gifts of Imperfection, 10th Anniversary Edition: Features a New Foreword
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The Gifts of Imperfection, 10th Anniversary Edition: Features a New Foreword Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

Brené Brown (Author, Narrator), Random House Audio (Publisher)
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 41,674 ratings
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The 10th-anniversary edition of the game-changing number one New York Times best seller, featuring a new foreword.

For more than a decade, Brené Brown has found a special place in our hearts as a gifted mapmaker and a fellow traveler. She is both a social scientist and a kitchen-table friend whom you can always count on to tell the truth, make you laugh, and, on occasion, cry with you. And what's now become a movement all started with The Gifts of Imperfection, which has sold more than two million copies in 35 different languages across the globe.

What transforms this book from words to effective daily practices are the 10 guideposts to wholehearted living. The guideposts not only help us understand the practices that will allow us to change our lives and families, they also walk us through the unattainable and sabotaging expectations that get in the way.

Brené writes, "This book is an invitation to join a wholehearted revolution. A small, quiet, grassroots movement that starts with each of us saying, 'My story matters because I matter.' Revolution might sound a little dramatic, but in this world, choosing authenticity and worthiness is an absolute act of resistance."

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  1. Listening Length
    4 hours and 31 minutes
  2. Author
    Brené Brown
  3. Narrator
    Brené Brown
  4. Audible release date
    September 8, 2020
  5. Language
    English
  6. Publisher
    Random House Audio
  7. ASIN
    B085LLCPT5
  8. Version
    Unabridged
  9. Program Type
    Audiobook
  10. See all details
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Product details

Listening Length 4 hours and 31 minutes
Author Brené Brown
Narrator Brené Brown
Whispersync for Voice Ready
Audible.com Release Date September 08, 2020
Publisher Random House Audio
Program Type Audiobook
Version Unabridged
Language English
ASIN B085LLCPT5
Best Sellers Rank #431 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals)
#2 in Medical General Psychology
#4 in Journal Writing Self-Help
#28 in Psychology (Audible Books & Originals)

Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
41,674 global ratings
Personal development and resource
5 Stars
Personal development and resource
I could not put the book down. There are a ton of references for other great reads and research resources. I was also able to take away several pointers for personal development.
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Top reviews from the United States

C. Dove
5.0 out of 5 stars Timeless Wisdom
Reviewed in the United States on April 21, 2024
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I once had a conversation with a monk who differentiated between the knowledge that comes of reading a thousand books and the wisdom that can be gleaned from reading a single book a thousand times. I will not say that I've read this book a thousand times, but I may eventually. I have listened to it on audible, read it, and, for a few years, I decided to read and focus on one guidepost a month. I can't speak for others, but for me, this book was life changing. I love that Brené willing to share deeply personal stories, her sense of humor, and her relentless digging deeper to find the core of a term, idea, or insight. Of the ten guideposts my favorites, and by favorite I mean the one's I struggle the most with, are - self-compassion (letting go of perfectionism), rest and play (letting go of exhaustion as a status symbol), and finding meaningful work (letting go of self-doubt and "supposed to". I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
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Lisa Bourbonnais
5.0 out of 5 stars The Best of Self-Improvement Literature!
Reviewed in the United States on July 12, 2015
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The Gifts of Imperfection is a well written, thoroughly researched, compassionate must read book from the perspective of a seasoned and trustworthy professional, which contains a plethora of concrete information about how to live more genuinely and capably in the face of fear and self-doubt.Brene’ Brown writes her guide to achieving self-acceptance, self-esteem and well-rounded living, by focusing on her years of research on shame, fear, and vulnerability, providing the reader with specific ways people think and act that either challenge or welcome the topics. She highlights both hindrances and aids to living fully in ten guideposts or chapters, in which she explains ways people can use the information she’s learned from her research to let go of negative thoughts and emotions and let in the things that provide joy and contentment. The author’s ability to communicate, her status as an empathetic peer, and knowledge as a practiced researcher and social worker, shine through her writing, expertly bringing together her writing style and the useful information she imparts.

Brown writes intelligently and from the heart about the findings of her decade long research, providing personal anecdotes to frame the information, which humanizes her ideas, making the research less scientific and more relatable and applicable for the reader. The author tells the story of her own journey of curiosity, exploration, and growth which develops alongside her shame research. Brown tells about using her data to assemble a “do” and “don’t” list for feeding shame, fear, and vulnerability, and realizing, “This is just great, I’m living straight down the s*** list.” (xii) When she admits that this led to her “2007 Breakdown Spiritual Awakening,” the reader feels comforted and less overwhelmed by learning he or she is living similarly. By telling her own story and those of family, friends, and contributors to her blog, Brown powerfully and positively influences the reader’s experience of reading, processing, and retaining essential concepts.

This book provides its reader with a wealth of helpful and applicable information to be used now and in the future, not only planting the seeds for thinking about changing perspectives on shame, but providing the building blocks for developing new ways of thinking, acting, and living. Brown doesn’t simply suggest that a reader combat shame, for example, she tells how the people in her research live successful, complete lives in the face of it: with courage, compassion, and connection. In this example, one of many in the book where she shows not tells the reader how to enact change, there are clear definitions of the three C’s. The reader learns about living courageously and compassionately by the research Brown cites and examples she gives from people’s personal experiences. Brown efficiently communicates using similar methods for teaching the reader her other topics, which range from cultivating a resilient spirit, cultivating creativity, to cultivating meaningful work. The reader finishes the book both satisfied with the results and ready to read it again, knowing new ideas will be available each time through.

The winning combination of Brown’s personality, expertise and wisdom is irresistible and not to be missed. Both her personal and work experiences stand alone as readable material, but together they are entertaining and therapeutic. Any person looking to make his or her life better should look no further than The Gifts of Imperfection, as Brown has discovered in her research an area of sociology from which we can all benefit in a myriad of ways.
4 people found this helpful
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Angela Risner The Sassy Orange
5.0 out of 5 stars Simple to read and understand, but such a powerful, life-changing message
Reviewed in the United States on January 29, 2014
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This is the first book by Brene Brown that I've read. I just happened across the title on a friend's Facebook page and thought it looked interesting. How did I live without Brene Brown in my life before?? This book falls right in line with others I've read recently (Stephen Cope's The Great Work of Your Life, Gretchen Rubin's The Happiness Project, etc.) in reaffirming that if you live your life according to "Supposed to Be," you will never be happy.

I can't possibly share all of my favorite parts (I have 31 pages of highlights), but here are a few:

•People may call what happens at midlife "a crisis," but it's not. It's an unraveling - a time when you feel a desperate pull to live the life you want to live, not the one you're "supposed' to live. The unraveling is a time when you are challenged by the universe to let go of you think you are supposed to be and to embrace who you are.
•It's like walking toward a star in the sky. We never really arrive, but we certainly know that we're heading in the right direction.
•Owning our story can be hard but not nearly as difficult as spending our lives running from it. Embracing our vulnerabilities is risky but not nearly as dangerous as giving up on love and belonging and joy - the experiences that make us the most vulnerable. Only when we are brave enough to explore the darkness will we discover the infinite power of our light.
•Shame hates it when we reach out and tell our story. It hates having words wrapped around it - it can't survive being shared. Shame loves secrecy. The most dangerous thing to do after a shaming experience is hide or bury our story. When we bury our story, the shame metastasizes.
•The root of the word courage is cor - the Latin word for heart. In one of its earliest forms, the word courage had a very different definition than it does today. Courage originally meant, "To speak one's mind by telling all one's heart."
•Every time we choose courage, we make everyone around us a little better and the world is a little braver. And our world could stand to be a little kinder and braver.
•The word compassion is derived from the Latin words pati and cum, meaning "to suffer with." I don't believe that compassion is our default response. I think our first response to pain - ours or someone else's - is to self-protect. We protect ourselves by looking for someone or something to blame. Or sometimes we shield ourselves by turning to judgment or by immediately going into fix-it mode.
•Chodron: "Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It's a relationship between equals. Only when we know our own darkness well can we be present with the darkness of others. Compassion becomes real when we recognize our shared humanity."
•The heart of compassion is really acceptance. The better we are at accepting ourselves and others, the more compassionate we become. Well, it's difficult to accept people when they are hurting us or taking advantage of us or walking all over us. This research has taught me that if we really want to practice compassion, we have to start by setting boundaries and holding people accountable for their behavior.
•We can confront someone their behavior, or fire someone, or fail a student, or discipline a child without berating them or putting them down. The key is to separate people from their behaviors - to address what they're doing, not who they are.

Wonderful, wonderful book. Amazing revelations.

Highly recommend.
5 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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JOSE SPINALI
5.0 out of 5 stars Excelente libro..!!
Reviewed in Mexico on March 13, 2022
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El libro es excelente la autora es extraordinaria y te hace reflexionar a lo largo del libro sobre "Vivir a todo corazon" y porque lo más importante es ser nosotros mismos y ser felices en los diferentes ambitos de nuestra vida.
Además en este libro destaca como el ser vulnerable es un gra demostración de coraje y valor y no una muestra de debilidad.

Me fascinó este libro, lo recomiendo 100%
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Arpit Patidar
5.0 out of 5 stars Even looking at this book makes me feel good.
Reviewed in India on September 29, 2023
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This is must go book for those who are searching mental peace for themselves and want to fight self rejection inside their minds.
It helped me to understand how Gratitude can help us to have positive and supporting perspective on our life.

Living in a society which has a lot of negativity for everything and we develop a self critical and self abusive behavior, This book is one of the most help full tool.
2 people found this helpful
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WpgJets
5.0 out of 5 stars Life is short. How do you want to live in yours?
Reviewed in Canada on February 28, 2021
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A must read for anyone who overthinks, is self-conscious, lives with anxiety, and would like more self-confidence.

Brene’s book organizes information on how we look at ourselves in a negative way and provides practical suggestions on how to address it. She writes appropriately for the intended audience. Not clinically (not that there is anything wrong with that) and with humour. What I appreciate is her sharing her own experiences.

Take what you need from this book. It will take work and practice. It will definitely help you change aspects of your life if you commit to honouring yourself and stick with it. You can do this!!!!!
3 people found this helpful
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Andrea_HP
5.0 out of 5 stars Me ha cambiado la vida
Reviewed in Spain on February 15, 2023
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Ojalá lo hubiera descubierto hace 10 años. Es un libro que todos deberíamos leer para tratarnos con más compasión y cariño. Dejar ir la necesidad de perfección. Le doy mil puntos. No es un libro de "auto ayuda" es un libro para entenderte, perdonarte, sanar, y aceptar que sentirnos vulnerables es bueno.
One person found this helpful
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Rachel Koons
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book to help gain perspective and love yourself wholeheartedly
Reviewed in Italy on January 6, 2023
Verified Purchase
Still at the beginning chapters of this book, but I already feel myself accepting some of my imperfect traits more and more. It is so wonderful to be reminded that we need to love ourselves as much as we love others and that many of our "flaws" are actually gifts.
2 people found this helpful
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