Giving Away Power

 From the time we are children, we are taught to give away our power to others. For example, when we were told to kiss and hug relatives or friends of the family when we didn’t want to, we were learning to override our inner sense of knowing and our right to determine for ourselves what we want to do. This repression continued, most likely, in many experiences at school and in situations at work. At this point, we may not even know how to hold on to our power because giving it away is so automatic and ingrained.

To some degree, giving our energy to other people is simply part of the social contract, and we feel that we have to do it in order to survive. It is possible to exchange energy in a way that preserves our inner integrity and stability. This begins in a small way by listening to the voice inside of us that lets us know what we want — no matter how many times we override its messages. Other examples of how we give away our power are buying into trends, letting other people always make decisions for us, not voting, and holding back our voice when an inappropriate joke is made. When we keep our power, we also must be aware of the possible opposite side — being aggressive, which is a form of fear. The remedy for this is to let our inner balance come back into play.

As we build a relationship with our power and follow it, we begin to see that we don’t always have to do what others ask us to do, and we don’t have to jump on every trend. All we have to do is have the confidence to listen to our own voice and let it guide us as we make our own decisions in life and remember the necessity for balance. (Daily OM)