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The Counterintuitive Benefits of Surrender
And how it can lead to your empowerment.
Surrender is not about giving up, but about letting go of counterfeit control. – Brene Brown
When you hear the word “surrender”, do you roll your eyes?
I mean, it sounds like giving up, giving in, raising a white flag, and rolling over. These things stand in sharp contrast to our ingrained sense of taking responsibility and ownership over our lives. How could surrender, taken this way, possibly be any good for us?
It might also remind you of religion. Many of the world’s religions ask that their followers submit to the will of a higher power.
What I’d like to offer here is another perspective on surrender. One that doesn’t hold us back, but instead releases us from our self-imposed shackles.
What I find interesting about the idea of surrender is that it seems to have permeated throughout our shared history. Even the more “intellectual” wisdom traditions, like Buddhism and Stoicism, implore us to surrender.
But, why? What can we gain from surrendering? What would we need to give up?
And, if it’s useful to surrender, what can we do to move us in that direction?
