“In your own life it’s important to know how spectacular you are.” Steve Maraboli, Life, The Truth and Being Free.
That hits the key message of self-empowerment actually. It’s not a calling to ask you overly self-confident or self-praise. I will translate it as a self-appreciation attitude, I mean if you don’t learn to love yourself, appreciate yourself, why to love or appreciate others. In fact, in all of the key leaders, or inspiring people I have met, self-empowerment remains one of the crucial similar element I have seen in them.
Same goes for me actually, I acknowledged that self-empowerment can bring one to very far, I think that’s ever since entering university that made me so, as I look out for more challenging times that squeezes your physical, and intelligent and emotional stamina each time. Then I thought that the greatest inspiration one should have is himself. By looking back who you were, and who you are, and where are you in the future, rather than keeping on admiring people and being inspired but each one person is very different. Till I concluded to the 10 things I have learned in university.
I actually had the idea to write about this after looking at the reality of many youths and teens today being so pampered and easily swayed or peer pressure by the various social media they have without having a self respect to their own decisions rather than choosing to accept whatever information that came into their way. And also looking at a lot of people helplessly can’t find jobs not because of academic qualifications, as i think the qualifications just grant you an interview entrance, but beyond that it’s about empowerment and presentation. And EVEN IF you are accepted into it, time will tell how good your soft skills, aptitude, attitude are to keep you developing in the career. So anyway here is the 8 steps:
1) Change your Focus
As it’s said, the Optimist sees the opportunities in difficulties, the Pessimist sees difficulties in opportunities.
Changing your focus also means changing your paradigms. This pretty much comes from experiences on observing things from different angles. Take time to think about things, take time to respond instead of spontaneously, keep on asking What and Why? There’s no harm changing in focus and that does not mean you are uncertain, you are just trying to look at the bigger picture. So keep calm and think. This is what i always urge other environmental activist to think about, every time when we are overly passion over an issue, we tend to judge it easily from our point of view instead of considering the public perspectives.
2) Do Things Now
Empower yourself to do things now. Time will never wait for you, it’s all about making time, not allocating time. I define time management with two words. Efficiency and Effectiveness.
Efficiency is doing things the right ways. Effectiveness is doing the right things.
Most of us can’t do things NOW because we are always puzzling ourselves with what’s the priority and ended up doing nothing much but just scrolling through facebook amid of figuring out.. oh well. But yes the key message here is again, Self Empowerment Comes a lot from Knowing WHAT YOU WANT TO DO! A lot of us are not even sure about what are the right things for us to do because we just don’t have a direction of what we want to achieve in this life or focus!
3) Develop an Attitude of Gratitude
Being Gratitude and praising God for each satisfying day does not mean you are easily contented and comfortable. A very wrong perception, most of the time, is people asking others to keep on chasing for their achievements and never give up and be satisfied.
Being Gratitude is all about being wrapping up a check point and it’s an important self empowerment as to see things positively and to keep up the momentum to do more things tomorrow.
It’s a good attitude to be glad full for whatever that has happened the day before you go to Bed. I live on that. And I am never much happier ever since. I feel that it is a kind of motivation!
4) Keep Learning
When it’s mentioned learning here isn’t necessarily related to academically, or general knowledge, it about keeps on climbing up even when you fall, or accept failures as part of learning. Know that life is a book of a long journey to be written with ups and downs, victory and failure moments. What makes leaders and admirable people earn much more respect is when they admit their mistakes and weaknesses and admit that they still have a lot to learn. We all Do. But the key is, failure is the motivation to make you keep on learning. So never fear to make mistakes, it WILL have to come eventually.
5) You are Awesome!
Just know that you are Awesome. You are unique, you are not created out of experimental result by mistake but by the hands of Gods. Everyone is unique, bounded by their own culture, roots and code of practices and also experience, personalities are formed and transited through various paradigm shifts that make the person unique. This is more than self-confident, I felt this way too but just somehow don’t know how the feeling came about. It came naturally after I found what I want to do somehow. You just need to experience this yourself!
6) Eliminate Negativity
Or, adapt to optimistic views. Eliminating Negativity is not asking you to ignore negative thoughts, we have to accept it but to empower one is to keep on thinking on constructive thoughts, waste no time in thinking all the What IFs pessimistically. Rather, I find it exciting each time challenges arises, if I could take the time to think, eliminate negativity, do a simple SWOT analysis or perhaps just a layman thinking, eventually you can also find opportunity in it, and just stick to that thought.
7) Learn to like the things you need to be Done
Learn to Like. yes. If not, don’t do it. We all know that we can’t like everything we do, I am sorry if you are in a position where you are forced to like the things you do because you have no choice. Because I have no experience of positions like this before but I suppose all you need to do is just like it. Because if you can’t like it, you are getting nowhere really. While for me, I choose to go for the things I like to do, it’s very important for one to like for he needs to do, that’s empowerment in what he does and he will perform better and it also defines your personalities as time passes by.
8) Start your Day with Something Positive.
The last but not the least, Start your Day in a proper manner. Waking up late, rushing in the bath, being late to work, it is not a really good plan to start the day with that way. Rather do something short and sweet, for those who are spiritual, read your scriptures, or perhaps, a quick shout in facebook to motivate everyone with the new day, or to list out 3 things you want to do for the day!
1) Today i want to smile at least 10 times! 2) I want to learn how to be more appreciative today. 3) I want to help the blind to walk across the street.
Positive thoughts are also something positive for the morning. And keep the positive thoughts throughout the whole day! This is self-empowerment too, always being positive and optimistic and that also empowers people around you!
Look, this is not meant to be a motivational article or what, but this is what I have to express after self-empowerment really did push me to a better person each day (though yes not every day can be so self-empowered) that is why I am writing this to remind myself too, and ultimately, it is also important to find empowering people around you and empowering each other 😉
Self-empowerment, it’s not everything about yourself too. Do your bit to change the community! Spread Happiness and Goodness!
