Let in the aer: Find your power
Photo by Jennifer Marquez on Unsplash
Getting empowered isn’t just about reading motivational quotes or repeating your daily affirmations, though both of those practices can definitely be part of your self-empowerment journey. Before you can reclaim your innate power, you have to first figure out what it is and where it’s hiding.
You have to identify what it is about who you really are that makes you powerful. Your true self is the source of your power. So, having spent the past few weeks getting close and comfortable with your authentic self will hopefully make it easier to connect with your spark.
Your power can show up in so many ways. It can be in the unique ways you see or make sense of the world, connect with others, create, speak, listen, understand, love, empathize, problem-solve, imagine, reason, lead, rebound and shift from setbacks, learn, teach, hope, hold emotions, and so much more. Owning all of who you are only gets you closer to discovering that power inside you so you can nourish it and flourish from it.
5 questions to get you started
What gives you the biggest buzz? Think back to your meditation, journaling, or time with yourself in nature, and see if you can pinpoint what aspects of your self-discovery or deepening felt most energetic. Maybe it felt like an actual hum of faint electricity running over your skin. Or a jolt like a spark being lit or little sparkler going off. Or a heat in your belly or chest, like a tiny hearth inside you being tended.
Where is your stillness? Sometimes your power shows up in the form of a quiet, grounded, rooted feeling. It’s in the place where you are calm and relaxed. It’s not frenetic or propelling you forward. It’s inviting you to stay, explore, be. Remember that in our hyper-paced, always-on-to-the-next-thing, productivity-attached culture, there is power in stillness, reflection, in just being.
Where is your focus? In keeping with the idea of being still with some part of you, ask yourself where you most easily bring your focus when you are relaxed and in touch with your authenticity. What naturally comes to mind and keeps you engaged? What part of you rises to the surface when you welcome your whole self to be present?
What makes you feel strong? Think about the aspects of yourself that you don’t doubt. The places where you feel competent, capable, strong. The things you’d never question about who you are, the things you know are unshakable.
What do those who know you best see that you might not? Sometimes the people who know us really well see things about us that we don’t, because we all have blind spots about yourselves. When you think about your closest and most important relationships, what seems to be the underpinning or glue that you bring to each? Feel free to check in with them. Be careful here, make sure you consider only people you have positive relationships with, with whom you’re comfortable being your true self. There is little value in the opinions of people who don’t actually see you when it comes to exploring your power.
Once you’ve identified what’s powerful about you, spend some time with that. Play and stretch inside it. Examine it. Unpack it. Listen to it. Give it some of your time and attention. Celebrate it. And tune into opportunities to tap into it as you move through your days, especially as you face challenges.
