Brené Brown

Brené Brown is an American professor, researcher, author, and podcast host. She is a research professor at the University of Houston, where she holds the Huffington Foundation Endowed Chair at the Graduate College of Social Work. Born in San Antonio, Texas, in 1965, she received her PhD in social work from the University of Houston. Her research focuses on vulnerability, courage, shame, and empathy. Brown first came to wide public attention through her 2010 TEDxHouston talk on the power of vulnerability, which became one of the most-watched TED Talks of all time, with more than sixty million views. Her books—which include The Gifts of Imperfection (2010), Daring Greatly (2012), Rising Strong (2015), Dare to Lead (2018), and Atlas of the Heart (2021)—have sold tens of millions of copies worldwide and have been translated into dozens of languages. Atlas of the Heart (2021) maps eighty-seven emotions and experiences that define the human experience, won the Goodreads Choice Award for Nonfiction in 2022, and was adapted into an HBO Max docuseries. Brown is also the host of the podcasts Unlocking Us and Dare to Lead. She lives in Houston, Texas.