5 Easy Ways to Empower Yourself Daily
I am going to be real with ya’ll. Being a boss a** b**** on the daily is a struggle. Although we are told over and over again that we contain the power within us, it is still hard to tap into that power every day. We have many outside factors that may be sapping us of our energy, whether that be school, work, relationships, or family. And it is not just the being of people but also the judgments that may come with them.
Plus, aside from the outside factors, we are often our biggest critic. The world can be very hard on an individual. It seems almost impossible to find ways to build ourselves back up. Well, it is not! There are so many ways that we can look for the power within us daily. So here are 5 easy ways that you can empower yourself daily so that you can become the boss a** b**** that you are.
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1. Quote Wall/Power Poses
Keeping a quote wall is such a powerful and easy thing to do as a way to empower yourself daily. Just write down all your favorite quotes or ones that greatly empower you and place them somewhere that you could see it daily. You could put them on your bathroom mirror, by your front door or on the refrigerator.
I have a friend that bought cheap picture frames and framed her most empowering quotes and placed them all around her shower. That way with every direction she turned, she was reading something empowering to her. This was genius because she typically showered in the mornings before starting her day so she already had a great start.
Plus, how symbolic it is to literally be cleansing yourself of dirt and refilling with inspiration. If there are no quotes you can think of, I can guarantee that an hour on Pinterest will help you find plenty! I created my own board of just inspirational quotes and such.
Now if quotes don’t impact you very much, I would suggest power poses. You have maybe heard of people that do the Superwoman/Superman pose in the mirror so that feel empowerment and the ability to conquer anything.
This pose meaning your hands on your hips with your chest puffed out. Not the hand in the air as if your flying (although do what works for you). The Superwoman/Superman pose is very powerful and can definitely work.
As I talked about in a previous article (16 Ways to Feel Like a More Empowered Woman), I would stand up straight with my chest puffed out and say “I am the Batman.” Obviously, I’m not, but there was something about knowing that I was in charge of Gotham City and all its inhabitants that made me feel truly empowered.
Previous TED Talk speaker, Amy Cuddy, studies body language and how it impacts a person’s sense of power and confidence. Check out her 30-second video with NOVA’s Secret Life of Scientists and Engineers on power poses:
2. Daily Burn
One of the tips I would definitely give to empower yourself daily would be to work out.
Aside from the physical health benefits of working out, it also gives off such great endorphins. Now I know what you could be thinking, “I don’t have the time to go work out/ I don’t want to pay crazy amounts for a gym membership”. Well, there is a great option that allows you to workout from any location and pay an affordable fee.
Daily Burn allows you to stream over 1000 workouts taught by certified trainers. You can create a personalized plan to create the perfect workout for yourself and complete it at any time you want. There are courses available for you at any stage of your life. So for beginners, experts, pregnant individuals and older individuals. The price though.
There’s a catch.
You can try Daily Burn for 30 days free and after that, it is less than $20 a month. Got you there, didn’t I? You thought there would be an actual catch but it is honestly as easy as that. Plus, you can cancel at any time. No commitments. No hassle. Aside from the endorphins, you will get, just having the freedom to be in charge of your workout is empowering as well.
Now don’t get me wrong, I HATE working out. I think it is the absolute worst.
But when I stop and think about all the positive effects it has aside from the physical aspect, it makes you want to take stock in it. “Regular activity is an investment in your mind, body, and soul. When it becomes a habit, it can foster your sense of self-worth and make you feel strong and powerful. You’ll feel better about your appearance and, by meeting even small exercise goals, you’ll feel a sense of achievement” (Help Guide). Plus, “the same endorphins that make you feel better also help you concentrate and feel mentally sharp for tasks at hand” (Help Guide).
3. Help Someone Else
We always tend to think that empowering ourselves means we have to only do things for ourselves. However, helping someone other than yourself can be so empowering in itself.
Being able to use your abilities or talents to help someone achieve a goal is one of the most rewarding things you could ever experience. In fact, Steve Bloom, a writer for the website Do Something Cool talks about what is called a “helper’s high”.
He says that “scientists have been studying a phenomenon called “helper’s high”: helping others releases endorphins which, in turn, improves mood and boosts self-esteem. In short, helping others feels good. It’s possible that helping others does more for the happiness of the person helping than the person who receives the help” (Do Something Cool). Through helping others, you are able to learn more about yourself and what kind of person you are.
Remember how we talked about the outside factors that make us feel less empowered in the first place? Well doing something for others can help you to tackle that as well. It can help you to deal with stress better and build resilience.
“It may seem strange, but helping others doesn’t add more stress to your life, it actually helps us manage stress better.
In one study, college students took an immersion trip where they helped the poor. Those who took this trip were assessed months later and were found to manage stress and adversity much better than their peers.
Why is that?
It’s about perspective. By looking at the challenges of others’ lives, you can take that point of view into your own. It makes you more accepting of the stress and hardships we all have to face.
Sometimes we lose that perspective in a culture obsessed with celebrities living glorified lives, seemingly carefree. But helping others takes us back to reality by reminding ourselves that most people struggle and that it’s ok if we do too” (Do Something Cool).
It takes all of us together to create an empowered world!
4. Make a To-Do List
When I say create a to-do list, I am not saying to create one that has impossible tasks or tasks that will take forever. Instead, mix it up and put some big and little tasks on the list. So for example, your list could look like this
- Take a shower
- Mow the lawn
- Eat lunch
- Write paper for school
- Paint nails
See how there are both challenging and easy tasks on the list. Now while this a pretty simplistic list, you could also create some for your life and what you want to get out of it. Having something like the Productivity Planner is a guaranteed way to help get your life under control and feel more empowered daily.
The planner allows you to accomplish the things in your life that are important and not just busywork. This means effectively prioritizing certain task that will help you achieve your goals, dreams, and ambitions.
It gets better.
The Productivity Planner also forces you to plan at the beginning of the week and at the end, you can reflect on how effective you were. This helps you to learn your patterns and improve for the next week.
I can honestly think of no better way to feel empowered on the daily than to organize your life in a manner that helps you reach your goals. Creating lists and goal planning will actually make you feel like you accomplished a lot and is a great way of empowering yourself daily.
5. Keep a Positive Journal
Now, this is something much different than the Productivity Planner. This is actually my favorite! A positive journal is where you write down the positive things in your life or the things that will have a positive effect. I wish I could say that I had thought of it myself but one of my friends introduced me to positive journals.
So you could take some of the same quotes from your inspiration wall, entries from a good day, movie stubs that will remind you of a good experience, or whatever. You just want to collect many things that make you happy and put you in a positive mood.
A positive journal is something that you can go and look at when you are having a crappy day and need to empower yourself. I would even challenge you to write, or place, something in that journal every day. That can be challenging because we all have those awful days, but try to find some positive that could be added.
I personally have one and it is one of the best remedies for a crappy day when I am feeling low and disheartened. In my positive journal, I keep notes people have written for me over the years, quotes, and paper memorabilia from my different travels. My positive journal is in my bed side table because it is close and handy for when I am feeling especially low.
Or Just Journaling
Here’s the deal.
If the positive journal is not for you, any form of journaling period can be so great for empowerment and your self-esteem. Huffington Post says that “There’s a strong connection between happiness and mindfulness. Journaling brings you into that state of mindfulness; past frustrations and future anxieties lose their edge in the present moment. It calls a wandering mind to attention, from passivity to actively engaging with your thoughts” (Huffington Post).
Being able to stop and reflect can help bring you to the present and relax. Aside from the peace and mindfulness it brings, journaling can do much more. “Journaling is an outlet for processing emotions and increases self-awareness. This internal familiarity becomes a bridge of empathy, you’ll better intuit and understand what others are experiencing.
Being able to get on the same page with someone is a mark of emotional intelligence and allows for a much deeper connection” (Huffington Post). Plus, “journaling about a positive experience allows your brain to relive it. And reaffirms your abilities when the ugly head of self-doubt appears. The release of endorphins and dopamine will boost your self-esteem and mood. These reflections can become a catalog of personal achievements that you continue to go back to” (Huffington Post). So you would see nothing but positive results in journaling and a great easy way to empower yourself daily.
Using these 5 different tips, you are on your way to being empowered daily. Remember that it takes time and dedication to want to work on yourself. But just be kind to yourself and embrace these 5 tips and you are well on your way. I leave you with this beautiful quote from W.E.B. Dubois:
“There is no force equal to a woman determined to rise” -W.E.B. Dubois
Resources:
YOUTUBE- Amy Cuddy: 30 Seconds on Power Poses
