Power – A Verb or a Noun?

Power Points

“Five shifts in perspective that make power more available and attractive”

By Dr Chris Johnstone

‘FIND YOUR POWER’

‘Over To You’ suggestions by Inspirit Consultancy

1. From viewing power as control to seeing it as influence: Even if a situation is out of your control, you may still be able to influence it. Each of your choices acts like a vote that steers things in a particular direction.

2. From a view of power based on physics to one from psychology: You don’t need to force yourself or others in order to bring about change. Instead, learn how to stimulate the desire for change, and then seek out the understanding or skills that make it possible.

3. From a focus on bigness to recognizing the power of tiny steps: The butterfly effect describes how tiny forces can have huge effects. This perspective reminds you that small actions can and do make a difference.

4. From viewing power as a noun to seeing it as a verb: (This one is my favourite!!!!!) When you shift the focus from noun (what you have) to verb (what you do), you emphasize the active steps you can take to power yourself.

5. From ‘they should’ to ‘I will’: When you focus on what you can do rather than on what you think others should do, you move out of complaining and into action.

Over To You

Each of the above ‘Power Points’ invites the possibility of creating momentum for action that you can take personal leadership of. One way of exploring how you could apply any of the above ‘Power Points’, is to mind map all the options that you could choose from to improve or change a situation. Write down anything that springs to mind, no matter how small or insignificant you might think an idea is, listen to your intuition. If you were to select one of your options to live out, which one would you choose?

Sometimes, as in Power Point 2, you might need to acquire a greater understanding about a situation, before any action can be taken. This understanding may come through conversations with others, working through your own thoughts and feelings towards something or re-discovering what inspires and truly motivates you.

Remember that “the smaller steps might seem insignificant when looked at by themselves, but they always form part of a bigger picture….The small movements become openings and starting points that can lead to other things.” Chris Johnstone