Leadership in Complex Times: Brené Brown’s Systems Theory & Jesus’ Lesson on Salt

In a recent conversation with Steven Bartlett, Brené Brown said something that stopped me in my tracks:

“In order for systems to thrive and grow, they have to keep permeable boundaries… feedback has to flow in and out. When the world gets complex, we stop wanting feedback. We close the boundaries, and the system atrophies. Self-referencing systems die.”

As she spoke, I immediately thought of Jesus’ words:

“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, it is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.”
(Matthew 5:13)

Salt doesn’t lose its saltiness overnight.
Systems don’t collapse overnight.
People don’t stop growing overnight.

It happens when we stop letting truth in.

Salt Loses Its Flavor the Same Way Systems Lose Life

Brené describes what happens when organizations, leaders, and communities become overwhelmed:

• They close off

• Stop listening

• Reject feedback

• Retreat into certainty

• Become self-referencing (“We’re good. We’re right. We’re fine.”)

In systems theory, that’s the moment decay begins.

In Scripture, that’s the moment salt loses its purpose.

To be salt of the earth is to remain engaged, open, permeable — willing to absorb what is happening around us and respond with wisdom, truth, and compassion.

When we close ourselves off…
When we curate our own echo chambers…
When we reject anything unfamiliar or uncomfortable…

We lose our saltiness.
We lose effectiveness.
We lose impact.

And eventually, as Jesus warns, what loses its flavor gets trampled — not because it is evil, but because it is inert.

Why This Matters for Us Today

Brené names the forces pressing on us right now:

• Rising complexity

• Geopolitical instability

• Economic pressure

• Social fragmentation

• AI and digital acceleration

The natural response for many of us — spiritually, emotionally, organizationally — is to shrink back, to wall up, to protect ourselves.

But Jesus calls us to the opposite:
To stay open enough for the Spirit to move through us.
To live in a way that preserves, flavors, heals, and illuminates.
To be a permeable system with a strong center.

Not boundaryless —
but permeable, discerning, responsive, alive.

A Permeable Church + A Permeable Soul

The church was never meant to be a closed loop.
Your soul was never meant to be one either.

Healthy systems welcome feedback.
Healthy disciples welcome conviction.
Healthy communities welcome difference.

Salt is effective only when it touches something outside itself.

Maybe Jesus was saying:

“Don’t close up. Don’t shrink down. Don’t become self-referencing. Stay open enough that your presence still changes the world around you.”

That’s what it means to be salty.
That’s what it means to be alive.

Want to go deeper?

I recorded a video expanding on this idea.

If it resonates, leave a comment and share your reflections.
Let’s stay salty together. 🧂✨