What It Really Means to Be Powerful

Freedom, joy, productivity, confidence.

Sandy wanted all of that. She was tired of feeling overwhelmed, confused and anxious. As she told me, “I’m sick of getting in my own way!”

I quickly realized that what she really wanted was to be more powerful.

When I said that to her, Sandy gasped and said, “Yes!” Then almost immediately she followed with, “But I’m scared to go there. I’m tired of feeling judged, and I hate how aggressive I’d have to be. I’m already exhausted!”

The type of power Sandy was talking about is what I call POWER OVER.

Power over has created much of the way the world is now. This is the “us vs. them”, “winner and loser”, “aggressor and victim” type of power.

It’s competitive – you know you’re strong because someone else is weak. Because of this, only so many people can be powerful, so they fight to be the one who wins.

With this type of power, you can’t be strong unless someone else is weak, and others benefit from you being weak.

If that’s the kind of power you want more of, I’m not your person.

What I was talking about was POWER FROM WITHIN.

It’s the power of true leaders, like Jesus, Buddha, Gandhi, Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King, Jr.

When you’re powerful in this way, everyone benefits – your loved ones, your clients, your community. In other words, everyone wins.

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Tweet: You’re most in your power when you are your most authentic, vulnerable, real self.

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With this type of power, you’re powerful whether you’re sitting alone in your office or in a group of thousands. It’s simply a way of being.

When I explained this to Sandy, she relaxed. “That kind of power is what I’ve always wanted – I just didn’t know what it was.”

Then, I surprised her by saying, “The really cool thing is – you already have this power.”

She laughed. “If I already had that power, my life would look a LOT different.”

Here’s the thing though, having this power and accessing this power are two totally different things.

You have to cultivate and clear space for it on the inside instead of trying to “get more” of it from the outside.

You have to let go of the emotional baggage you’ve been lugging around, like:

• fears
• old patterns of how you think, behave and see yourself
• past experiences

These things used to protect you and make you feel safe. They kept you small when you weren’t ready for more.

Now, they’re holding you back from accessing your inner power.

But they don’t have to.

It’s possible to release what’s getting in your way, to untangle from your past and have greater clarity than you’ve ever had before. It’s possible for you to reclaim your power and to become the leader and business owner you were born to be.

The fact that you’re reading this shows that you want more for yourself and your life than smallness and safety.

You want to make a difference. You want the joy and fulfillment that comes from sharing your gifts with those who need them. There’s nothing else like it.

And all of that comes from a greater expression of YOU. You sharing yourself – your gifts, your heart, your humor, your wisdom, your ability to shake things up – all of it.

You’re most in your power when you are your most authentic, vulnerable, real self.

That means letting go of old patterns and programming. It means showing up, listening, reflecting, connecting and creating.

It means getting out of your own way.

Share your thoughts below – I’d love to hear from you. (I read every comment!)

What would you need to let go of in order to access your inner power? What would doing that mean for your life and business?