Brené Brown

Casandra Brené Brown was born November 18, 1965, and later completed undergraduate and graduate study in social work (earning a MSW and a PhD) before beginning an academic career focused on human emotions and social behavior — particularly shame and vulnerability. Her doctoral and early research used grounded theory methods, involving extensive interviews to build theory from lived experience. Brown joined the University of Houston’s Graduate College of Social Work as faculty and rose to become a research professor and the Huffington Foundation’s Brené Brown Endowed Chair, where she has led research and taught on shame, vulnerability, empathy, and leadership. Her academic work translated into accessible books and public talks; Brown has combined qualitative scholarship with public-facing writing and training for organizations. Brown’s 2010 TEDx talk, “The Power of Vulnerability,” became one of TED’s most-viewed talks and substantially raised her public profile, leading to bestselling books, global speaking engagements, corporate consulting, podcasts, and media projects including a Netflix special, The Call to Courage (2019). Her books and talks have been translated into many languages and used widely in business, health, and personal-development contexts. Beyond books and talks, Brown founded the Brené Brown Education and Research Group and has taken appointments such as visiting professorship at UT Austin’s McCombs School of Business; in 2024 she was named executive director of The Center for Daring Leadership at BetterUp.