What Is Personal Power?
You have likely heard the term personal power, but do you really understand what it means? It’s essentially empowerment, a deep sense of it.
- Personal power is confidence, it’s the inner-strength that carries you through the most difficult challenges in your life.
- It means having the ability to deal with obstacles and issues with courage. It means you are capable of breaking free from whatever it is that holds you back. It makes you feel powerful, emotionally and mentally.
- It’s mental toughness that will help you navigate any and every situation. Your personal power allows you to take deliberate actions, to make crucial decisions, and keep on the path that leads you to your goal.
- It allows you to live your life intentionally, to do so with purpose and with optimism. It allows you to manage boundaries, speak your voice, and purge unhelpful thoughts that may sabotage you.
- Additionally, your personal power will help you overcome the beliefs and habits that have been limiting you, holding you back from chasing your dreams. It’s also about influence. It’s about using your influence to impact the people around you in a positive way. You can become a force that drives improvement.
There is no greater source of strength to turn to in times of difficulty than personal power. It will help you get through those setbacks, challenges, and obstacles. Your personal power will be what separates you from everyone else, it will determine whether you are successful or not.
That’s all well and good, right? What you want to know more about is how you can increase your personal power.
Before we issue you with your 30-day challenge, we want to highlight what a lack of personal power can feel like.
- You often give in to the expectations of others.
- You complain about your life but make no move to improve it.
- You allow other people to make your decisions because you don’t trust yourself to do it.
- You depend heavily on others and tend to yield to their influence.
- You are easily manipulated because you are so heavily influenced by others.
- You feel powerless when you try to influence circumstances, events and other people.
- You constantly seek the approval of others, even if it’s detrimental.
- You feel incompetent, worthless, and lack confidence.
- You hurt easily, you take criticism, rejection, and judgement to heart.
- Conflict makes you feel uncomfortable and you will do anything to avoid it.
- You’re pessimistic and paranoid about others wronging you.
- You carry a lot of resentment, guilt, frustration and anger.
- You often paint yourself as a martyr who is sacrificing everything for everyone.
Does this describe you? Let’s flip the script now, what does someone with plenty of personal power look like? Let’s take a look.
- They are deliberate and decisive in their actions, unafraid of following their intuition.
- They take responsibility for their problems and circumstances, and take steps to change it.
- They trust themselves to make the right choices, but if they get it wrong, they believe they can correct it.
- They’re independent in both actions and thoughts.
- They are confident in any social situation.
- They are confident in their ability to be their best selves in any situation.
- They aren’t easily discouraged when plans don’t pan out.
- Conflict doesn’t intimidate them; it brings out their best.
- They are optimistic but grounded.
- They are emotionally intelligent.
Now, neither of these lists are exhaustive in any way. You can go through them both and tick the ones that apply to you. You may find that you embody points from both of the lists. However, we can’t stop at this lists.
This isn’t enough because it doesn’t actually tell you how to flip the lists on their head and embody more of one than the other. It doesn’t tell you how to develop your personal power.
If you want to move to the next level, then you have to be able to identify what it is that limits you. That is where you focus to start the change. That is where you will start your journey and it’s what will help you out into the world and get what you want.
The 30-Day Challenge below can serve as your framework, it’s a guide that you can use to kick-start your journey to increasing your personal power. Just remember this, perfection is a myth, a story that we tell ourselves and the stories that we tell ourselves influence us heavily.
The 30-Day Personal Power Challenge
Week 1
Week one is your opportunity to start developing key habits and establish what will serve as your framework for the rest of the 30 days and beyond.
Day 1 – understand right now that everything that has gone before no longer matters. The most important thing is to leave it all behind mentally.
A lot has happened to you in your life and you, like everyone else, have likely dealt with plenty of challenges.
You can do this through a series of yoga postures, a guided meditation or perhaps a walk in your favorite place.
Day 2 – this is your opportunity to set your goals. If this is something that you’ve already done, that’s great! Use this chance to reevaluate them.
What do you really want to accomplish, these 30 days is just the start of your journey.
Day 3 – let’s revisit your goals again. Now it’s time to break them down into bite- size pieces. So, break them into quarterly goals and then further into weekly ones.
This system will help you track the progress that you make. Remember to make your goals achievable, don’t overwhelm yourself.
Day 4 – make a list of what you will need to accomplish your new set of goals. There’s a good chance you don’t have everything you will need, but you can’t proceed until you acquire new skills, contacts, and anything else you may need to achieve what you want.
Day 5 – now it’s time to create a vision board. Now, this is something that you can tackle like a craft or you can use the internet to do so (think Pinterest boards). It will help you create a strong visual of your goals.
Day 6 – now you start your journal, this is what you will rely on to drive your progress and keep track of how you feel and what you think. There are plenty of good reasons to keep a journal, ultimately, the reason you are going to do so is that thoughts matter.
Day 7 – this is a free day, though you should take time to write in your journal. Just enjoy some free time and relax. Just be sure to set your alarm thirty minutes earlier than normal.
Week 2
Week two begins your outward efforts, this is all about perfect your environment to maximize your productivity and focus, all of which will help you shape your personal power.
Day 8 – provided you followed the instructions for yesterday, you should be awake thirty minutes ahead of your normal time. You don’t necessarily have to do anything productive with that time, it could be that you just enjoy a leisurely breakfast or enjoy more time to get ready. Getting up early helps put you in a positive state of mind.
Day 9 – beyond just getting up earlier, it’s important that you have a morning routine. Your morning routine should be one that starts your day off positively and kicks-tarts your day.
Day 10 – just like you should create a healthy morning routine, you should also create an evening ritual. Your evening ritual should be about optimizing sleep.
You will want to create a ritual to puts you in the right mental and physical state to sleep peacefully.
Day 11 – how much time do you spend watching television, playing video games or aimlessly swiping through social media? It’s time to curtail that. That doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy your favorite shows, try to curb it by at least thirty minutes each day. That’s a good place to start.
Day 12 – you’ve already started your efforts to cut down your screen time. Now it’s time to clean out your closet. Well, your smartphone anyway. How many apps do you have on your phone and gadgets?
It’s time to do a clean sweep and delete anything that you don’t use. Most phones show you the last time you used an app when you go into the settings of your gadget. This will help you be brutal.
Consider deleting apps you know that you use but use to kill time. Time is a commodity and you waste a lot of it needlessly.
Day 13 – it’s time for another cleanse, but this one is for your social media accounts. Look at your friend’s list, how many people do you follow and who is really adding value to your timeline and news-feed?
We tend to spend quite a bit of time on social media, and the more people you follow the more content you will have to browse.
Consider making lists so you can read relevant content at the right time. If someone raises your blood pressure, ask yourself why you maintain the connection. Either sever it or mute them.
Day 14 – again, this is your free day. You should use it to unwind and indulge in a hobby that you love. Often, the things that we love are things we are very good at. When you do things you’re good at, it gives your confidence a boost, which in turn increases your personal power.
So, even though we will continue to refer to the 7th day as one of rest, know that it’s an excellent opportunity to maximize your personal power.
Week 3
Now we enter into the period of time where you will focus on reducing your stress, and increasing your focus, creativity, and productivity. Again, these are all important factors in increasing your personal power.
Day 15 – this is your opportunity to turn meditation into a daily habit. You may already do this, but now you should schedule it into your daily routine. You don’t have to spend an hour in meditation but give yourself 15 minutes a day.
Day 16 – brain games are a good way to improve your cognitive function and sharpen your skills. Invest in a brain training app, a set of challenging brain game puzzle books or challenge your chess nemesis to a match.
Day 17 – now it’s time to adopt a mindfulness practice. This is separate from your meditation, and there are plenty of options that you can choose from.
The Raisin Exercise is an excellent way to get started – you can do this exercise with any type of food. Take that item of food and forget everything that you know about it. Now, focus on how it looks, the way it feels, how it smells, how it responds to your touch, and finally how it tastes. This exercise is an excellent way to shut everything out and learn to completely focus.
Day 18 – adopt the Pomodoro technique while you work. If you’re unfamiliar with it, you’ll be relieved to know that it’s incredibly simple. The basic idea is that you set a timer for 25 minutes and shut everything out to focus completely on a single task.
When the timer is up you treat yourself to a 5-minute break. Then you start the cycle again. You may want to set your timer for 50 minutes before you take a 10 minute break. Just choose a method that aligns best with your work.
Generally, after you cycle through four Pomodoros you take a longer break. This will improve your focus and ultimately, assist your productivity.
Day 19 – exercise is an excellent way to boost your personal power. How is this relevant? Well, nothing makes you feel better than a sweaty workout.
If it’s something that you struggle with, then you should choose some of your favorite physical activities to get you started. You are much more likely to stick with it, if you genuinely enjoy it.
Day 20 – it’s time to start a new habit – tackle problem tasks first. You need to create a sense of logic and order to the way you work.
Day 21 – enjoy your free day, make it count! This would be a good time to introduce a new mindfulness practice. Think about trying a body scan before you go to bed.
You can actually get yourself into bed before you do this. Simply lie back, let your arms rest loosely at your side, palms up, with your feet apart. Lie still as you become aware of your breathing, take note of the rhythm of your breath, and what it feels like to breathe in and out.
Now pay attention to how your body feels, how your pajamas feel against your skin, and make yourself aware of areas of your body that hurt, tingle or feel different. Now scan your entire body, starting with your toes and working to the top of your head.
Week 4
The fourth and final week is all about growing your skills, knowledge, and assets. Remember, you created a list of those on the fourth day of the first week. This week is an excellent time to revisit that list and really consider the items that you wrote on it.
Day 22 – start reading books that bring value to your life. This might be a subject that will value your career, your romantic relationships or your lifestyle in general.
It doesn’t matter what subject you choose; the point is that it adds value to your life and helps you sharpen a tool that you have or acquire a new skill.
Day 23 – let’s dial yesterday’s challenge up a notch. It’s time to find podcasts (or audiobooks) that will do the same. The thing about podcasts is that you can take them wherever you go.
There are so many choices out there, you are sure to find one that offers you what you want it to, including ones about personal power!
Day 24 – find yourself a new group, people who are similar to you. You probably have a strong friend group already, but this is different.
This is a group of people who should be at a similar level to you professionally and in your profession too, of course. Create a team of supportive people who can share your frustrations and lift you up. Remember, personal power can help you influence others and vice versa.
Day 25 – it’s time to push yourself out of your comfort zone – do something you’re scared of. It takes courage to leap outside of your comfort zone and it’s a skill that you should develop now because it will help you in pretty much everything that you do in life.
Day 26 – you can enjoy your free day a little bit earlier. This is an excellent opportunity to go back through the days and make up on anything you may have missed.
If you haven’t missed anything, you may want to just take some extra time in your journal to note how you have felt about this journey you’re on.
Day 27 – what are you trying to advance? What is it that you want to develop your personal power to do? If it’s to advance your career, then reach out to someone who can help you move it forward.
If it’s to improve your relationship, then reach out to your romantic partner. This is an opportunity to improve your relationships, build contacts, and ultimately, take action.
Day 28 – today, we want you to go out of your way to do a kindness for someone else. It might not fit the overall theme in the way you were expected. However, there is power in kindness and in helping others when you don’t expect anything back.
Your kindness will help others, just as it helps your happiness and fulfillment. What better way to exercise your personal power than by doing something for someone else.
Day 29 – the greatest gift that you can give yourself is to learn to love you. So, get your journal out and make a list of all the amazing traits, talents, and skills that you have that you love.
Make another list of the things you don’t love about yourself and learn to accept them. It’s one of the most powerful things you can do.
One of the most important ways of claiming your personal power is uncovering your unique talents. It’s difficult to do that without a sense of self-awareness. So, you may find it helpful to ask people close to you what natural talents that you have.
Don’t be afraid to invest in those talents – it will take time and effort to build them, but you can transform your talents into strengths.
Working your strengths will help you increase your self-confidence and that will help you build your personal power.
Stop worrying about failure and start following your gut. Let go of criticisms and failures and open yourself up to new experiences, even if that means following a path you didn’t imagine yourself ever taking. Be grateful, for your talents, experiences, and for yourself.
Day 30 – there is nothing new for you to do today, this is effectively the day where you hit a reset button. No, not to undo all the work that you’ve just done, but to start the cycle all over again. This might be a 30-day challenge, but your challenge doesn’t end here.
Life is a journey, and this is just a small part of your path, but it’s an amazing starting point to develop your personal power and use that to springboard yourself to success.
Once you develop your personal power, you can help others do the same. Your choice to embark on this journey could have serious implications for the people in your life and it’s up to you to determine whether that’s a positive or not.
