Last Updated on March 18, 2025
Your power is good
Spiritual teachers and wise people for millennia have taught us to love one another.
And in their names, people have fought wars and oppressed minorities.
As a result, the word “love” itself has a bad reputation for many people.
But love is still good!
In fact, love is precisely what heals us.
We’ve just misunderstood the word “love” to be the exact opposite of love.
I think the same is true of the word “power.”
Power is actually good.
It doesn’t mean what you think it means
Just as people have misused the word “love” to mean violence and hatred, people have used the word “power” to mean violence and hatred.
But I don’t think that’s actually what “power” means.
Power, in my opinion, is about your sense of choice.
We all have the ability to choose.
No one can give us that, nor take it away.
Power is not about controlling others.
That’s actually quite impossible.
The more you try to control someone, the more they rebel.
Just ask any parent of teenagers!
Sure, perhaps you can use fear and punishment to “keep people in line” temporarily…
…as they organize their resistance to your authority in secret.
The truth is, all power comes from within.
And power is all about lifting each other up, not keeping anyone down.
Power is the opposite of narcissism
Most kind, wise people I know are terrified of coming into their power.
They think they will become controlling narcissists.
But narcissism is driven by insecurity.
People only want to control others if they are out of control themselves.
The people “in power” in our world who are controlling, dominating, and destroying everything are just expressing how little power they actually have.
When you feel totally powerful, the first thing you want to do is empower others.
Not control them!
Because all power comes from within.
And it feels like being 100% totally secure within yourself.
Nothing can add to it, nothing can take from it.
Because who you are is power itself.
And this experience feels so good you want to help others have it for themselves too.
All-powerful, all-loving
Once in meditation, I imagined what it would be like to be an all-powerful God.
I pretended that I woke up one day, and discovered that everyone wanted to do whatever I commanded them to do.
At first I imagined just asking for small things, but then I tested my powers.
People would do anything I say!
And what I realized was this:
There’s no reason to ever get angry again.
There’s no reason to ever be frustrated again.
If I’m all-powerful and I want something to change, I can just instantly change it.
This means all anger is an expression of powerlessness.
But we are not powerless.
We always have choice.
And when we really realize our power, what we want to do is love everybody!
Power is not control
All attempts to control others are an expression of our powerlessness over others.
Parents do not control children.
Managers do not control employees.
Heck, I barely even control myself!
But if I have power, I can just do it.
No resistance, no frustration, no problem.
To come into alignment with reality means realizing what our power truly is.
If we want to influence others, the most influential thing we can do is to not use force, manipulation, or fear.
Instead, it’s simply to embody the energy of where we want to go.
And then invite others to join us…if they want.
Because they always have a choice!
When we fight reality, reality always wins.
But when we are in alignment with reality, we are in the flow.
And then everything just feels easier and works better.
Effortless leadership
When you come into your own power, you will realize you don’t have to try to “make things happen” with so much force, effort, or stress.
Instead, you can experience more flow, more ease, and more joy.
You are a positive influence on everyone around you.
People reach out for your advice or want to support your project.
All without saying a word!
Just because of how you are being in the world.
Instead of chasing after success, success comes to you.
And you naturally use your power for good.
Take care,
~Duff
(they/them)
