In order to Elevate your life we work with a simple set of 5 principles that serve to rise you to your fullest potential and create a long lasting transformation. Today I will be talking about the third principle: Power.
Power is commonly misunderstood so I will be breaking down what personal power is, and what it isn’t. I will share with you all the typical pitfalls of where and how we lose our power and I will provide some important information to help you better understand how you can become empowered in a few easy steps.
In my own personal journey I found that I had been at a loss with my personal power, giving it away to everyone and anyone, not realising that my power was exactly that, mine! This principle in the Elevate Programme is very important, as it is the preparation we require in order to step into our purpose and live a more authentic life.
What is Personal Power?
There is a common misunderstanding when I say the word power because most people believe power is:
Competition
Winning
Ambition
Arrogance
Ego
Authority
Control
Manipulation
None of these qualities are what true power really is though. Think to a time when you met someone who made you feel empowered.
What were their qualities?
I think you would have found that individual embodied a number of these qualities, that of true power:
Strength
Confidence
Calmness
Honesty
Integrity
Authenticity
Presence
Grace
Kindness
I think we can agree these are qualities we can all aspire to bring into our lives. So when I am speaking about personal power let us remember what true power is.
True power comes from a place of love.
“Genuine personal power is the ability to consciously choose one’s own aims, attitude and actions”. - Brendon Burchard.
How do we lose our Power?
We lose power through working at jobs we hate, giving ourselves to relationships we feel stuck in and to friends that drain us. Does this sound familiar?
Let’s take a closer look at some of the common ways we lose our power...
Relationships
Relationships, especially romantic ones are probably one of the easiest ways for us to lose our power.
Relationships created from the vibration of love will always make you feel good, uplifted, as though your cup has been filled up. This will be a mutual feeling for both individuals.
Relationships created out of the vibration of fear will only suck the life force energy from us. They will make us feel exhausted, drained and negative.
It is up to us to reclaim our power. We get to choose how we engage with others and spend our time.
It is important for us to work through any challenges in this space. Romantic connections, work colleagues and family members can be tricky to navigate but there are ways we can evolve these relationships for the better.
Now take a moment to think:
What relationships are depleting me of energy and/ or making me feel powerless?
Alternatively what relationships are giving you energy and uplifting you?
We also lose our power through the outwards consumption of technology & information.
There are so many sources we must evaluate when it comes to maintaining alignment with our source, our internal power. Many of the modern day privileges we have can actually become harmful to us if we do not use them with care. For example: our electronics are one of the key ways we lose power without even realising it. Phones, laptops, computers, iPads, whatever it is you own, make sure you take regular vacations from them. They suck the life out of us, making us feel depressed and anxious. It is important that we understand their harmful effects so we can maintain our power.
I personally noticed an increase in my inner power after not using a phone whilst I was away travelling, it wasn’t until I returned home that I began to notice how much I was using my mobile phone, it was like a space filler. I felt like I was becoming part of a ‘zombie smartphone apocalypse’.
I felt disconnected from the world when staring at my phone, and the reliance on these devices for everything drove me crazy. Even over dinner, it is impossible for people to go through the whole meal without checking their phones, or worse, answering them. Quality time with loved ones is difficult to maintain when we receive constant notifications.
Our phones have become the #1 addiction of the 21st century, so I invite you to learn how to disconnect. When we are using our phones we rarely notice how much time is passing so it’s really good to have a reality check and see how much we are actually using them. When I discovered how much I used my mobile phone it really drove it home to me that I needed to clear up this habit.
How often do you use your phone?
How many hours is that a day, a week, a year, or what about 10 years?
Entertainment – Television, music and news…
Entertainment can provide a positive addition to our daily lives however again this is a place we need to ensure we are mindful of. All things hold an energy, a subtle vibration.
What kind of vibration does your entertainment give?
I personally do not own a television, I removed it a few years back and I honestly have to say it was the best decision I ever made. I had little involvement with my television at that point in my journey anyway and I found it of no educational value. So I replaced the television with musical instruments and chose to create in my spare time or read, instead of drowning my thoughts in front of the TV.
Soon after the television was removed, the energy in my home became extremely tranquil and many visitors commented on its peaceful and calming effect.
When encountering the television at other people’s homes later I was shocked to see how much advertising was being forced upon us. Most of the advertisements do not even make sense.
Whilst reading No More Secrets, No More Lies by Patricia Cori, I noted these observations on the subject of advertising:
“Observe in full consciousness the overt messages that appear in advertisements and their actual relationship to the products being sold. Study and record your impressions. How do they make you feel? What is the underlying message? How are you being persuaded or manipulated, and on what levels of consciousness do you respond?”
Considering I do not own a TV it will probably not surprise you when I say I have not watched, listened to or read the news in over eight years. The news is there to scare us and to make us feel fear and devastation. It is strongly manipulated, as well as not really showing us the ‘true’ news that is occurring in the world.
I have never engaged with the news and felt that I am left with a positive upbeat feeling, I am always drained by it. This is a primary source that takes away our power on a regular basis.
I invite you to trial a 30 day challenge of no news and see how you feel afterwards. Trust me, those that do watch the news will keep you updated.
Music
In my early twenties I used to enjoy listening to hard core, heavy metal and rock music. I love this kind of music and grew up on it. However, I had noted the negative side-effects it had on me; it had the power to make me feel heavy with emotion and sadness.
This is not the desired feeling when we are looking to reclaim our power, expand our consciousness and grow to our fullest potential.
I realised that my choice of music required the same awareness that I applied to my food. I chose to be a mindful consumer of all things that would have an impact upon my consciousness.
Therefore, I ask that you be aware and notice how you feel when listening to music. Ensure that you are only allowing positive, healing sounds into your life these sounds have a far greater impact that we understand. Listen to the music of the greats, music that makes you full and alive with energy.
Money
Your relationship with money can also dramatically affect your personal power. Why? Because if you are not living in a state of abundance in all ways e.g. health, love, joy, wealth etc. then you are operating from a place of lack.
It is important for us to tap into what kind of mindset we have surrounding money so we can be sure that it is in alignment with our potential to be limitless.
Reclaiming Your Power
We can gain our power back by doing what we love, instead of doing what we think we should do.
How many times have you had to attend an event where you just really didn’t want to go?
Well, those days are over, you are no longer operating from a place of should. Every time you receive an invitation to do anything, unless you can answer it with a “hell yes” then you won’t be going. Because let’s face it, life is short and right now you are giving away your time, energy and money to things you couldn’t care less about.
It’s time to become conscious of our power and where we give it away.
The guiding rules for reclaiming your power start with:
There will be no should in your vocabulary, as you are a being of free will and its time you started acting that way.
When accepting an invitation the answer must be “hell yes” or else you won’t be going.
Your Power Exercise
I would like to invite you to take 5 or 10 minutes today and find a quiet place to be still. Once settled, journal on what things in your life empower you.
For example: practicing yoga, caring for your health, walking in nature, working on a passion project or meeting with a positive friend.
Write down anything that makes you feel any of the loving power qualities I shared at the beginning of this talk. This list will start to form your own personal power path and I want you to try to do at least one thing from the list below each day to claim back your power.
Empowering Vibrations
Now we are conscious of where we need to apply our attention and how we can be susceptible to loss of power we can begin to focus on the loving vibrations that empower us to be better and grow each day. Focus a little on each of these qualities each day and you will begin to encounter a shift.
I challenge you to choose one quality to focus on to bring forward your authentic self.
Love
Love is absolute oneness. Love is the epitome of who we really are. First, we must learn to love ourselves and once this practice is achieved only then we will be ready to engage in a soul connection. Self-love is the foundation for understanding love and ultimately our power as individuals. Practice love in all that you do, give love and receive love. See love in the all that is.
Truth
Speak your truth. It’s not often to see humans that are living in line with their truth but they are the most empowered of us. Become one of them. Speaking your truth is beyond powerful. When we are honest and live in alignment with the voice inside, everything moves forward and success can be obtained because the soul is at work.
Follow your heart
The intelligent mind cannot always understand the interventions of the soul, but it is here that our true purpose can be found. Whatever steals your heart, do that! When we operate from a place of I feel, we know this is the heart at work. When we use I think, we are speaking from the mind.
Gratitude
Express gratitude for the All That Is. We are extremely blessed to be alive and enjoy the wonders this world can provide us with. Gratitude is a game changer and is something that will change your life if you do it right. When practising this art, make sure you feel the energy flow of gratitude.
Kindness
A little kindness does not go amiss. There are opportunities for us to spread kindness every day. A smile to the stranger in the street, picking up the rubbish that litters the floor of Mother Earth; these are examples of the ways we can be kinder to the world. It is important that we are also kind to ourselves. When we are met with kindness and we operate from this place we can solve a number of problems.
I hope that you found this knowledge valuable in learning how to reclaim your power. I will be back with Part 4 of this 5 part series where I will share how to discover your life’s purpose.
If you would like to learn more about my personal journey to transforming my life then please check out my book Twenty8: The Age of Power or my Elevate Coaching Programme.
Thank you for reading, all powerful warrior!
With love & gratitude,
Fabienne