3 Ways to Empower Your Life

Recently I have been having a number of conversations about empowerment, success, money, women (and men to an extent) and power. I am not sure why, however, one thing I have noticed through these conversations are the perceptions on empowerment. Subsequently, in this post, I am going to share –

• My Opinion on Empowerment,
• What is Power,
• 10 Quotes on Power and Empowerment, and
• 3 Ways You can Empower Your Life!

My Opinion on Empowerment

Firstly, beware – this is personal! Secondly – there is a sense of vulnerability writing about this.

A number of years back, I remember having a conversation with a colleague, Jo, when we were creating resources and professional development for schools across Australia. As we often did, we were discussing teaching, students and how they learn. This discussion sparked something in me that I didn’t know was there until later. I made a comment along the lines of –

“It doesn’t matter what the teacher does, if the students’ perception of themselves is that they are stupid or worthless, they are not going to learn. The student has to learn to see through or untangle those beliefs themselves. They may even be subconsciously self-sabotaging themselves.” 

I didn’t know it at the time, but I was referring to me. Yes – I believed I was stupid, worthless, something was wrong with me and would never amount to anything. I had taken on board and believed these thoughts/beliefs from a variety of past experiences. I am not sure if Jo knew I was referring to me (I suspect she did as she was quite intuitive and guided another colleague to purchase the book as a Secret Santa present called When I Loved  Myself Enough).

Subsequently – from my own experiences, I can now see I am the only one that can empower me and you are the only one that can empower yourself. More than likely you will face your deepest fears, be challenged and mistakes will be made along the way, however that is part of the gift of the learning process and does not mean you are a failure, something is wrong with you or you are worthless. Ralph Waldo Emerson put it this way – “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.”

Yes, you can have support (and I encourage that as long as it is the right type) along the way, however in the end you are only who is responsible for you and stand in your power. What is power? Glad you asked…

What is Power?

The word “power” comes from the Latin word “posse”, which means “be able”. There are many definitions of power, including –

• “the ability or capacity to do something or act in a particular way,” or “the capacity or ability to direct or influence the behaviour of others or the course of events.” ~ Google
• “Ability to act or produce an effect.” ~ Merriam-Webster Dictionary
• “Capability of doing or accomplishing something.” ~ Dictionary.com
• “The ability or capacity to do something or act in a particular way.” ~ Oxford Dictionaries

After reading these definitions on power, what does it mean to you? What I refer to empowerment as it “power-with” not “power-over”.

Need some further clarification? Maybe the following 10 quotes can help!

10 Quotes on Power and Empowerment

The following 10 quotes relate to power and empowering yourself –

1. “We fear and crave becoming truly ourselves.” ~ Abraham Maslow
2. “Mastering others is strength. Mastering yourself is true power.” ~ Tao Te Ching
3. “The day the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace.” ~ Mahatma Gandhi
4. “Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” ~ Abraham Lincoln
5. “Most powerful is he who has himself in his own power.” ~ Seneca
6. “The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” ~ Alice Walker
7. “The measure of a man is what he does with power.” ~ Plato
8. “Ultimately, the only power to which man should aspire is that which he exercises over himself.” ~ Elie Weisel
9. “You see what power is, holding someone else’s fear in your hand and showing it to them.” ~ Amy Tan
10. “As I have often written, power is the fundamental ingredient of the human experience. Every action in life, every thought, every choice we make – even down to what we wear and whether we are seating in first class or coach – represents a negotiation of power somewhere on the scale of power that constitutes life.” ~ Caroline Myss

3 Ways to Empower Your Life

There are so many ways to empower your life and it really depends on your vision, intentions and goals.

1. Take Time Out to Reflect – by taking time out to reflect on a situation you can alter the way you see things and when you do that, life changes. Here are some questions you can use to reflect on a current situation –
   • What is the situation or activity you want to reflect on? (just the facts)
   • Did you notice anything before the situation or activity? (i.e. what thoughts, feelings or body sensations were you having – just notice do not judge yourself!)
   • What did you notice after the situation or activity? (again – just noticing, no judging yourself harshly)
   • What have your learnt or remembered from this situation or activity?
   • How are you going to apply these learnings?
2. Develop Habits and Rituals – Whether you consciously realise it or not, today you are the sum total of your choices up until now. Subsequently you can change your life when you change your thoughts, choices and habits. The following quote indicates this so well –

   “Watch your thoughts, they become words;
   watch your words, they become actions;
   watch your actions, they become habits;
   watch your habits, they become character;
   watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.”

   ~ Frank Outlaw (via Quote Investigator)

3. Focus on What You Can Control – what is in your control and what is not in your control? Knowing the answer to these questions are a great way to continue to empower and master your life. If you would like some ideas, click here. and remember it “Ain’t no sense worryin’ about the things you got control over, ’cause if you got control over ’em, ain’t no sense worryin’. And ain’t no sense worryin’ about the things you don’t got control over, ’cause if you don’t got control over ’em, ain’t no sense worryin’.” ~ Mickey Rivers.

I hope this post has helped give you an understanding of empowerment, identified what power or empowerment is for you and also gave you 3 ways to empower your life.

If you are ready to reclaim your courage and take the next step towards freedom and opening your heart, why not join our Toolkit?