Thanks for making last month's SOS Monthly the most read edition so far this year. It appears that we are all ready for some rattling cages and overturned assumptions, so let's press on!

This month we revisit the issue of personal power, and why women have historically had a difficult time recognizing and utilizing theirs. It all starts on a beautiful Sunday at the beach...

The Cage Rattling Continues...Power Revisited

A week and a half ago, we were blessed with a rare thing—a perfect beach day, on a weekend (when we didn’t have to work), before July 4th (and our population increases from 15,000 to over 100,000). My daughter and I decided that chores could wait, and we joined two of her friends and their moms at the beach.

Toward the end of the day, one of these women and I started talking about our work. She’s a counselor and therapist; I’m a coach. Although there are differences in how we approach our work, we are seeing similarities in the issues our clients are wrestling with.

• Being so caught up in your job or your business that it’s tough to feel balanced or to take care of your self (I am way too guilty of this one!)
• Spending many years creating a successful career, but living with a nagging feeling that is not what you are meant to do.
• Feeling powerless to change anything.

As we discussed ways to help mitigate these issues for our clients, I mentioned that one of my dreams was to figure out how to get women to band together as a bloc—to vote and/or otherwise influence policy. My friend’s eyes brightened, and she said, “Yeah! Why do you think we can’t do that?”

Now I’ve been asked that exact same question every time I’ve stated that dream. Usually, my answer is, “I don’t know, but I’m sure going to figure it out.”

On this most perfect day, I had an epiphany:

Women don't believe they have power as a group, because many of them can't believe that they have power as an individual.

In other words, until you believe and have confidence in your own personal power as an individual, you won’t be ready to join with other people to exercise your collective power. Or, as Alice Walker once said, “The most common way people give up their power is by thinking that they don’t have any.”

When I shared my epiphany with my friend, her eyebrows went up, she nodded, and said, “You might be right.”

The next day, I had coffee with a woman I had not met before. She had recently moved to Martha’s Vineyard, and wanted some advice on her job search. Again, as we talked, the subject of women’s collective power came up. I shared my epiphany with her, and she had the same reaction as my friend on the beach. I know that two is not a statistically valid sample size; however, I do feel like it’s an idea worth exploring some more. What do you think?

And if we are all going to get more comfortable and confident in our own personal power, just exactly how are we going to do that? For starters, just notice when you are using your power, and acknowledge it. I’ve been doing that for the last couple of weeks, and have seen the laws of attraction at work. The more you acknowledge your use of power, the more comfortable and confident you become with it. And, you’re more comfortable talking about it with others.

To acknowledge my personal power, I began writing down my Daily Uses of Power in the same place that I write my Gratitude List every day. But I found I wanted to write more about my power experiences:  why I used it, how I knew I was using it, how I knew I was good at using it.

So I created the Your Own Great and Powerful™ Journal. It includes plenty of space for you to write about your personal power and how you use it. It also has inspiring an provoking quotes from powerful women on every page. Best of all, as a reader of this e-zine, you can get a complimentary copy (8-1/2” x 11”, 38 pages, valued at $9.95), by clicking on the link below:

Download Your Own Great and Powerful Journal Now!

And here are some questions to get you started:

• What made you feel powerful today?
• How did you use your power?
• How did others react to your power?
• When and where will you use your power next?

Marianne Williamson says, “That which we do not claim remains invisible…” Don’t let your power remain invisible, turn it on and let it shine!

Want to Do Some Of Your Own Rattling?

Write for SOS Monthly

Next month, for the first time, we'll have a guest columnist for SOS Monthly. I'm not going to spoil the surprise and tell you who it is now, but I will tell you it will be something completely different.

If you are inspired or provoked by any of the SOS Monthly topics, or you think there's a topic I've been ignoring, let me know. I'm happy to give you the space to do some cage rattling of your very own.

Get Involved, Get In Touch

If you’re interested in exploring more about life transformation, personal power, and cage rattling, or just about tiaras and the really cool women who wear them, here are just some of the ways for you to connect.

Visit my blog, Creating An Ideal Life While Wearing a Tiara. I post all kinds of musings, questions and general craziness here, and you’re welcome to join in and comment on any and all postings.

The SOS Forum is a terrific place to find some support and motivation from others who are taking a bigger leadership role in their lives.

To have SOS Monthly automatically sent to your inbox each month, please complete the form below:

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The mission of SOS Monthly is to inspire and empower you to lead the big life you want--right now! Comments, feedback and ideas for stories are always welcome.  Also, please feel free to forward this along to anyone who might be interested and/or benefit from its contents. All story ideas, comments and suggestions are most welcome.  Send me your input!

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©2005 by Barbara Bellissimo. All rights reserved.

Your Own Great and Powerful is a trademark of Barbara Bellissimo.