Vulnerability: An Invitation to Freedom

Every morning before the world asks anything of me, before I open my email or scroll social media, I sit quietly with my Oracle deck. It has become a little ritual of mine, a daily check-in with something greater than myself. It doesn’t take long—just a few moments of stillness, a shuffle of cards, and an open heart.

This morning, when I pulled my card, a single word looked back at me: Vulnerability.

I’ll be honest with you—my first reaction was resistance. Vulnerability? Really? That word has a weight to it. My rational mind immediately started in: Ugh, that doesn’t sound good. Vulnerability is weakness. It means exposure. It means risk. It means admitting I don’t have everything figured out.

But I’ve learned to pause before dismissing what the universe is trying to tell me. So, I sat with it a little longer. And slowly, I felt a different understanding settle in. This card wasn’t a warning. It wasn’t a condemnation. It was a confirmation.

I am in a season of unknowns. I’m walking into territory I’ve never walked before. My next steps aren’t perfectly mapped out, and my decisions are flowing more from intuition than spreadsheets. And yes—that feels vulnerable. But what if that’s not a negative condition? What if vulnerability is actually the portal into the very confidence and clarity I’ve been seeking?

The Story We’ve Been Told About Vulnerability

We live in a culture that praises strength, decisiveness, and confidence. Vulnerability, on the other hand, often gets cast as weakness. How many times have you heard, “Don’t let them see you sweat” or “Never show your hand”? We are taught that exposure makes us fragile, that uncertainty makes us less credible, that not having all the answers somehow diminishes us.

And for years, I believed that. I equated strength with control. I thought leadership meant knowing exactly what to do, what to say, and how to hold it all together—always. And while that image might win respect on the surface, it also creates a prison. Because the truth is, no one has it all figured out. Not me, not you, not even the people we admire most.

What I’ve discovered—through both painful lessons and beautiful surprises—is that real strength comes from the moments we allow ourselves to say, “I don’t know yet.” Or, “This is new for me.” Or even, “I’m scared, but I’m willing to try.”

That’s vulnerability. And far from weakening us, it’s the very thing that allows us to expand.

Vulnerability as a Bridge

When I first stepped into entrepreneurship, I thought my MBA, my years of leadership, and my hard-earned expertise would shield me from uncertainty. And yet, I found myself in countless situations where I didn’t have the answers. Sometimes it was a new strategy, sometimes it was managing cash flow, sometimes it was simply trying to navigate the emotional rollercoaster of building something from nothing.

Each time, I felt that pull of vulnerability. My instinct was to cover it up, to project confidence I didn’t feel, to keep the mask of certainty in place. But here’s what I learned: the more I resisted vulnerability, the more isolated I felt. The moment I let myself admit, “This is hard, and I don’t have it all figured out,” connection flowed in. People offered support. Solutions surfaced. My own intuition sharpened.

Vulnerability is the bridge between where we are and where we’re going. It doesn’t weaken the structure; it’s what allows us to cross.

From Vulnerability to Confidence

Here’s the part that surprised me: confidence doesn’t come before vulnerability. It comes after.

We often think, “Once I’m confident, then I’ll try.” But the truth is, the trying comes first. The shaky voice, the trembling hands, the leap into the unknown—that’s the doorway. And once you’re inside, something magical happens.

The universe meets you there.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve taken a step I wasn’t ready for—launching a program, writing a book, speaking in front of an audience—and felt utterly exposed. But the moment I crossed that line, clarity arrived. Opportunities unfolded. The fear softened. Confidence grew—not because I had it all figured out, but because I allowed myself to walk forward without having it all figured out.

That’s the paradox: vulnerability creates confidence.

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The Liberation of Vulnerability

The fear of vulnerability is one of the greatest obstacles to inner freedom. We resist it because it feels unsafe. But once you stop seeing it as danger and start seeing it as choice, everything shifts.

When I dropped the story that being vulnerable made me weak, I started to see how it actually made me more connected—to myself, to others, to the divine. Vulnerability is where honesty lives. It’s where real relationships are built. It’s where authenticity breathes.

And let me tell you, it’s liberating. No more masks. No more exhausting performance of having it all together. Just truth. Just presence. Just being.

Practical Ways to Lean Into Vulnerability

I don’t want this to just be theory for you. Vulnerability is a practice, and here are a few ways I lean into it:

1. Ask yourself what you’re afraid of.When I feel resistance, I pause and ask, “What am I afraid will happen if I let myself be vulnerable here?” Most of the time, the fear is exaggerated. Naming it helps release it.

2. Share honestly with someone you trust.Vulnerability doesn’t mean sharing everything with everyone. It means being real with yourself and opening up to the people who can hold that space for you.

3. Let intuition lead.Vulnerability often comes from following nudges that don’t make sense yet. Trusting your inner voice builds a muscle for living with openness.

4. Reframe mistakes as learning.Vulnerability means you will try things that don’t work. But each misstep carries wisdom. See them as stepping stones, not failures.

5. Celebrate your courage.Every time you choose vulnerability, acknowledge it. You are rewiring your brain to see it as strength, not weakness.

   
   

Vulnerability in Relationships

One of the most beautiful gifts of vulnerability is how it deepens connection with others. When we show up with our guard down, we invite others to do the same.

I’ve seen this in friendships, in my family, and in my work with clients. The moment I admit, “This is new for me too,” or “I don’t have all the answers, but I’m willing to walk beside you,” something softens. Trust blooms. Authentic connection takes root.

People don’t connect with our perfection—they connect with our humanity. Vulnerability is the bridge.

Choosing Vulnerability as Freedom

Here’s what I want you to take away: vulnerability isn’t something that just happens to you. It’s something you choose.

You can choose to step into the unknown with fear, or with openness. You can choose to see vulnerability as a cage, or as a key. You can choose to let it paralyze you, or liberate you.

The universe is always calling us into expansion, but it rarely looks like a perfectly paved road. More often, it looks like an invitation to trust, to leap, to walk forward with shaky legs and an open heart. That’s vulnerability. And that’s freedom.

Final Thoughts

This morning’s Oracle card was exactly the reminder I needed: vulnerability isn’t something to fear. It’s something to embrace.

When you let go of the fear that vulnerability makes you weak, you discover it’s the birthplace of strength. When you choose vulnerability, you create space for confidence, clarity, and connection. You create space for the universe to meet you, guide you, and expand you.

So, if you’re standing at the edge of something new—whether it’s a decision, a relationship, a calling—I invite you to see your vulnerability not as a burden, but as a blessing. It’s not proof that you’re unprepared. It’s proof that you’re alive, growing, expanding.

And who knows? Maybe today, this is your card too.