Lock-In and Lock-Through Power: Chapter 18 of Strong Ground

Leading with courage, clarity, and compassion in a world that feels increasingly complex is no easy undertaking.  In Strong Ground, Brené Brown brings her signature blend of research, storytelling, and practical wisdom to help us find stability when everything around us feels uncertain. This book isn’t just about leadership; it’s about life. It explores:

• How to stand firm in your values when challenges arise
• Why vulnerability is a strength, not a weakness
• How to build trust and resilience in yourself and your teams
• Practical tools for navigating tough conversations and staying grounded under pressure

Do any of these situations sound familiar?

• You’re laser-focused on getting epic stuff done and suddenly startled by a knock on your door
• You leave a tough meeting feeling grumpy after navigating challenging personalities, only to get into an argument at home
• You’re asked a question while still mentally stuck on the previous task and you’re not fully present
• You switch tasks so often that the quality of your work sometimes suffers

This month, Tracy Mrochek and Rich Gassen will dive into Chapter 18 of Brené Brown’s book Strong Ground and explore what it means to be locked-in and why locking-through matters.  

Together, we’ll discuss:

• How to protect our locked-in power without losing connection.
• How to find strong ground by being “tough and tender,” as well as being locked in and locking through.
• How these concepts align with servant leadership principles and why they matter for creating trust and resilience in our teams.

We’re also sharing a short video segment on what strong ground means to Brené in leadership. And, we touch on a couple of other topics she covers in this great read.

This chapter from her book is saved as an audio recording, found here: 

https://brenebrown.com/podcast/lock-in-and-lock-through-power

We also scanned a copy of chapter 18, and provided some supporting resources, located here:

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1FtXVgCpkJGd8zeuJx3G6hmqLgRvOAbdZ?usp=sharing

Lastly, here is an interview between Brené and Adam Grant, where she explains the origins of strong ground. It’s worth listening to, so you are grounded in our conversations! 

(This link starts at [12:36], and you should listen to about [29:00]: Definition of Strong Ground using the Tush Push as an example.)

https://youtu.be/nbSC4kmdHSc?si=2rikYTSdAg43CCIo&t=1236

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This session’s Discussion Questions:

1. What does “locked-in” mean to you in your daily life? How does it help and/or hinder?
2. When have you experienced the tension between staying focused and being available for others? How did you handle it?
3. What strategies can we use to “lock-through” without sacrificing our locked-in power? What strategies have you used and what has worked the best?
4. How does the concept of locking-in and locking-through connect to servant leadership values like empathy, listening, and stewardship?

Additional Questions for you to ponder with a friend:

5. What does mental toughness mean to you and how do you engage in recovery?
6. How as servant leaders can we straddle the paradox with the people we work with to develop the toughness necessary to do hard things along with the tenderness required to thrive?
7. How do you determine when deep focus worthwhile and when it is not worth the investment?
8. How can we create team norms that respect both deep focus and accessibility?

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Join us on January 16 at 8:30 am on Zoom:

https://go.wisc.edu/ad5684

Meeting ID: 987 0673 4791

Passcode: 156691

Rich Gassen for the Servant Leadership CoP