7 Steps to Tap Into Your Internal Power
I was listening to a podcast with week with Melissa Ambrosini, and absolute guru of mine, and Gary Zukav, a spiritual teacher, Harvard grad, and best selling author. I found it to be extremely enlightening and eye-opening. First off, both Melissa and Gary’s voices… ahh, absolutely mesmerizing!!
Anyways, they discussed the idea of being a “universal human”, an idea in which we as humans don’t identify with external things such as gender, religion, age, ethnicities, or even reactions from others, but instead identify with the consciousness inside of us and the present moment. You, reading this, are conscious. I, am conscious. Strip away everything else, and we are just two conscious beings in different bodies on this earth.
You’re probably thinking, yes Bethany, I know this. Of course we are! And I like my identity, don’t try take that away from me! Don’t worry, I’m not trying to take it away from you! I also love the identity I’ve created in this human suit of mine! But think about it: how often do you identity yourself according to external things? Whether it be your job, your social status, your life accomplishments, your future goals and dreams... We often think this is where our power lies. Don’t get me wrong, all of these things are amazing and it’s okay to love those things, but we are so much more than that! We have a power inside of us that we just scratch the surface of tapping into. We have the power to find joy, presence, and peace, and we have the ability shift our energy at any time no matter our external state. How freaking powerful is that?!
Most days I have a plan of how things are going to go. If it doesn’t go to plan, I can become anxious, annoyed, inpatient, snippy, or even feel less than. But my internal power…. holy cow. It’s so powerful. And so is yours.
External things: someone yells at you, someone dies, your dog pees on your meditation cushion (yes, this just happened to me), you’re stuck in traffic and have to be somewhere or when your partner is annoying the living daylights out of you. What do you do? You feel it, re-align with your values, shift your state, connect to your consciousness, and move forward.
This is your internal power.
“True joy is not effected by the external environment. Joy originates in you. That is your authentic, internal power. The best you’ll can get from external power is temporary happiness. Your internal power will lead to lasting happiness and joy.” - Gary
Nobody can take your internal power away from you, no matter the external circumstances. Here’s what’s amazing too, lovies: the more you tap into it, the easier it becomes to access. However, it’s not easy, and it’s something that you have to practice. Every. Single. Day.
So, how do you tap more into your internal power?
Feel your feelings. All of them. The good, the bad, and the ugly (I mean even the ones you don’t like or want to talk about having!). Whenever you feel it, don’t run, don’t numb out with TV or social, don’t even go exercise just yet. Just sit with it and feel it. Where do you feel it in your body? Let it sit, burn, and pass. It will pass, and even if it feels like it doesn’t. Just be patient. The more you sit with your feelings and emotions,, the less power and control they have over your actions. The less control and power they have over you, your internal power becomes stronger and stronger.
Don’t take anything personally. The actions of others should never sway your internal power. You should obviously be able to take objective feedback, learn, and grow, but don’t let anyone else’s negativity, shadows, or old wounds make you feel less than or deter you. You are powerful just as you are, just by existing!
Know your core values, then take action from there. So, what are your core values? It’s extremely important that you know them! There are several free resources that you can pull from: I like Melissa Ambrosini’s latest book for this (she gives you prompts), as well as the Minimalist’s Core Value worksheet, and even free tests online. But honestly, just think: what are the values that are most important to me? What are the foundations to which I will not say from? For example, my top 5 are: intelligence/always learning, making an impact, community, health and beauty, and creativity and vision.
Know what brings you joy. Write it out! Knowing what makes you happy and joyful helps you tap into your internal power by making decisions that align with this feeling of joy! For me, nutrition, writing, eating well, encouraging others, and creating are all sources of pure joy in my life. I tap into my internal power the most when I taking action and incorporating these things.
Identify what in your external environment you put the most weight into. Is it your job? Your family? Your status? Your social media presence? Then think, who would I be if I lost it? Tomorrow, if I was to wake up in another body, have no husband, blog, coffee shop, etc. Who would I be? Scary AF right?! However, it’s important to lean into this fear. While this experience is 99.9999999% not going to happen (but hey, I don’t know what the future holds), it’s good to remind ourselves that we are not our external environment and that our power doesn’t come from it. We are simply conscious beings living a life in a body. What we do with it matters, but we should not identify our worth in it. Practice shifting your worth to just being, not what you do, wear, or what others think.
Know what impact you want to make. This goes a bit back to the core values, but a bit deeper. What do you want to leave in the world? The more we tap into giving, the more we tap into your internal power. I want to give joy, education, and a better feeling in their body to others. Nutrition, meditation, yoga, and writing are my actions do that. The more you are aligned with what impact you want to make, the more power you have and the more action you can take.
Meditate. Meditate, meditate, meditate. I repeat this tip in every blog I write or piece of advice I give people on how to change their life! Ultimately, it’s about learning to be still. The internal power is in the stillness, the uncomfortable. Being still and knowing yourself is the only true way to truly tap into that internal power. I would start with 2 minutes per day, then work up to 20. I know for me, it takes 10 minutes just for my mind to shut off! Just sitting still, not identifying with anything else, not listening to anything else, and just breathing. Being. Reminding yourself of this life force you have inside of you. The stillness that is within all of us.
With all of my love!
Bethany