SELF-RELIANCE : THE KEY TO PERSONAL POWER
Image: Sade by Matthew Rolston, 1988
When we believe in our power, we take bigger risks and find ourselves living the life we WANT rather than what we deign to settle for. Activating self-sovereignty and having accountability for our own goals gets us there—this week in Jim Rohn’s “The 10 Powers to Be Great” we dive into his sixth power: self-reliance.
The idea of self-reliance is an important one to dissect because within it is the key to building personal power, regardless what life sends our way.
“Primarily say, ‘I am the one responsible,’” Jim says. “And decide that I will learn the necessary skills so that I can help other people learn their skills. But I’ve got to be the final one that people look to, and primarily learn to count on myself.”
We prioritize and champion community at Benshen.co, and understand its superpowers; with community we can support one another, celebrate each other’s wins and rally to rise again after our losses. Community makes life sweeter and richer and gives endless levels of depth.
The beauty of the Benshen container exists through the way we support each other and multiply our success by doing it TOGETHER. Simply put, the capacity for connection is the sauce of life.
But, with that said, no one is going to be the one at 7 A.M. begging you to get up to meditate, or follow through on your well thought-out business plan, or push you every step of the way when you need to muster up the courage for whatever your Vision entails. There is a liminal space between where your support team hypes you up, and you taking the leap to do the thing.
Enter, the power of self-reliance and self sovereignty. Not only is self-reliance about practicing responsibility to follow through (which is literally the key of turning visions to reality), it's also a muscle that ultimately encompasses believing in your own decision making and trusting your intuition. In reality, self-reliance is the ultimate form of self-love.
All too often when intuition speaks, there is a tendency to undermine, second guess, or downplay the valuable information that is unveiled. Which makes sense—because everything in society pulls us out of the mode to trust. Instead, with so much contrasting information around us, we feel conflicted and confused, seeking more and more advice and external answers and validation at every turn. In the end, we feel farther away from our vision rather than closer to it.
This is precisely why self-reliance is what makes us GREAT, a powerful variable as Jim calls it. When we combine a sense of responsibility for our actions, time, and decisions, plus the intuition to make choices that set us up for success, we can leap quantum levels ahead. Time, space, and other people’s opinions, will have less impact on how we proceed.
Instead, we can tap into our personal wellspring of clear thoughts, the incredibly powerful and efficient tool that enhances our ability to compute reality. That’s what INTUITION is— a filtering mechanism that helps us fulfill our desires. In this newsletter, we’ll provide an exercise to strengthen this inner guidance and activate self-sovereignty, as well as have a dialogue around the discipline necessary to believe in yourself. Because when we take on the full responsibility of who we are, we, as Jim remarks, “never complain and never explain.” We have confidence in our path forward and that is powerful.
"Don't seek approval. This may be the toughest suggestion for you to follow— and the most important…You're giving your personal power away every time you seek validation from someone else for who you are."
— T.J. MACGREGOR
Image: Pissenlit, René Lalique, 1914
EXERCISE:
DEVELOPING INTUITIVE GUIDANCE
It is thought that our intuition flashes its “answer” to us in 9 seconds, and everything we need to know in order to make informed, conscious decisions. This is especially important when determining the best form of action to help move us one step closer to what we desire and how we want to feel. With meditation and other conscious practices, we can begin to enhance our intuitive capacities.
Through practice, we can begin to develop a more empowering relationship with our subconscious programming, allowing ourselves to choose options presented by our very own intuitive intelligence that gives us the most energy.
Ask yourself these 3 questions this week to begin to unlock your intuition and allow it to guide you to make decisions. Without asking for external advice, using this practice to strengthen your self-sovereignty and sense of responsibility for your own actions will cultivate earth-shatteringly levels of empowerment.
1. Write down a desire—something specific and that lights you up when you see it on paper.
2. Ask your intuition to show you what is possible, and which actions and discipline must occur to let the flow of your desires come through. What’s coming up?
3. All week, what does it feel like to align your actions to your desires? Do you feel an intense sense of inner power and confidence? Do you feel the weight of responsibility of future you? If you feel the weight of responsibility, what is the very next step you can take in order to make it less daunting?
Image: Figure Blocks, Robert Heinecken, 1966
"A hunch is angel talk, and probably should not be ignored. Listen to your hunches, pay attention to your intuition, do not dismiss your random thoughts, inspirations or ideas. Heaven talks in snippets, not in speeches. Angels whisper fast."
— NEALE DONALD WALSCH