Personal Power
During the second weekend of the Uncertainty program–a four weekend investigation of how to meet the conditions of uncertainty from the prespective of the warrior or leader–an important question surfaced.
What is personal power?
Angeles Arrien, cultural anthropologist and teacher extraordinaire, and yours truly, answered the question this way.
Your personal power is the sum total of your knowledge, skills, gifts, talents, apptitudes, character qualities, resourcefulness, creativity, and experiences. When supported by commitment, engagement and readiness, a human being is said to be sufficient, in their power.
Personal power is a potent force. And, it is not a project, not something that we work up to or earn over time. Rather, it is something that we claim.
A claim is "an assertion of the truth of something." It is a declaration that we are well-matched–now!!!– for the inevitable encounter with life's experience.
Many of us wait for proof that we are sufficiently empowered for our journey of meaning. Remember Wayne's World, where Wayne and Garth declare on bended knee that they are not worthy? "We are not worthy, we are not worthy..."
Well, that's how many of us live our lives, like a small dog rolling over on our back, in supplication.
Visionmakers never beg. They create.
In order to create, we must have all our tools of manifestation available. Visionmakers claim their personal power, their sufficiency. It is not predicated on someone else granting us our powers, or meeting an artificial criterion of satistfaction.
We claim our personal power....and then use it to create something that has heart and meaning at home, at work and in the community.
Be bold Visionmakers. Claim the singular gifts that you–and only you–have been given to pursue the mysterious journey of meaning!
© Patrick O’Neill 2010. All rights reserved