Day: March 9, 2022

Releasing Limits You Place on Yourself: A Self-Empowerment Tune Up

Personal Success, Self-Empowerment, Women's Self-Empowerment

EXPLORE -> ENVISION -> EXECUTE -> EVALUATE -> EVOLVE -> ENJOY & CELEBRATE

March 8th is International Women’s Day; however, every day presents a new opportunity for us to feel empowered. Throughout Women’s History Month, we make the point to celebrate women, their contributions, and successes.

What does success mean to you when you think of being a self-empowered woman? Of course, it can change, so what does it mean to you TODAY? Boosting your ability to take control and have a more self-empowered approach to life requires having a strategy and being tenacious about getting what you want or need.

Here are actions and questions to respond to that can help you release limits you may have placed on yourself which can move your Self-Empowerment needle in a profound way.

*EXPLORE

Exploration and awareness are the first step on a journey to enhanced self-empowerment. It includes identifying your talents, strengths, opportunities, and challenges to provide a pathway toward growth and discovery of your “Superpower”, your unique talents. The more you identify your uniqueness, the more you will be able to build on them with intention.

“There’s power in allowing yourself to be known and heard, in owning your unique story, in using your authentic voice.” -Michelle Obama

Exploration Questions:  Ask yourself the following questions and write down your responses.

  1. What do you want and why do you want it? (Be specific in responding.)
  2. Be honest with yourself, where are you right now in your life? Are you where you want to be, doing what you want to do?
  3. What’s painful to deal with, what provides you with pleasure?
  4. What is a story or situation you carry around in your head that doesn’t serve you well but is repeated over and over? How can you reframe the story in a way that serves you in a more powerful way?
  5. What are 3 skills do you have that makes you successful at what you do? These are unique abilities you have learned through trial and error, mistakes, and accomplishments.

*ENVISION

When you Believe it, you can Envision it and What you envision, you can Achieve! There is power in imagining your future self and visualizing what you desire becoming a reality. When you believe and envision what will be, it helps you create and make an action plan for success.

“My best successes came on the heels of failures.” -Barbara Corcoran

Envisioning Questions: Ask yourself the following questions and write down your responses.

  1. If this was the best year ever, what would it be like? What would be different?
  2. How would you complete the following statement? “I will know I am successful when ______________________?” (List at least 3 responses)

*EXECUTE

Before you can execute, you must have clarity. Determine what you need to do to move the needle from where you are currently to where you want to be. Take specific, courageous, and uncomfortable actions that create forward movement to execute your self-empowerment goals. Take note of the goals you’re aiming for and the reason they are important to you.

Execution Questions: Ask yourself the following questions and write down your responses.

  1. What is the number one thing that has been holding you back from being the woman you want to be? (This is a key question to address because it helps you develop a plan of action.)
  2. What actions have you taken or plan to take that gets you closer to reaching your goals?
  3. What additional capabilities do you need to master to get from where you are in life to where you want to go?

*EVALUATE

Analyze what you can learn from what didn’t work. Assessing the results of your actions and behaviors taken to reach your goals is an important and useful exercise to learn what you need to do differently. Take time to daily reflect on the plans you have executed. 

Evaluation Questions: Ask yourself the following questions and write down your responses.

  1. What hasn’t worked for you during the past year or two…. or longer?
  2. What thoughts dominated your thinking during the past year or two? It is time to get rid of those thoughts that are not serving you well in being self-empowered.
  3. What has been working for you? Build on what is working.

*EVOLVE

Reflection Questions: Ask yourself the following questions and write down your responses.

  1. What are 2-3 things you are grateful for this week?
  2. What challenged you?
  3. How did you support other women?
  4. What could you have done differently?
  5. What did you learn about myself?

*ENJOY & CELEBRATE

Oftentimes we don’t stop to pat ourselves on the back. It is important to celebrate your success and accomplishments. It will help to keep your spirits high throughout any minor mishaps you encounter.

The key is to celebrate progress you are making along the way to accomplishing your goals. Every time you accomplish a milestone, do something to recognize and enjoy the progress you are making.

Acknowledge and track your achievements so that you can remember them and tap into those resources when you feel down and need encouragement.

“Each time a woman stands up for herself, without knowing it possibly, without claiming it, she stands up for all women.” -Maya Angelou

Maintain a Self-Empowering Mindset

Develop a self-empowering phrase that you can tap into to help you get through the tough times, such as “I am strong and can accomplish anything I set my mind to and crush it!” or “I Got This!”. Place this phrase on your wall, on your desk, in your phone, or wherever you want a visual reminder of how awesome you are.

“And so, lifting as we climb, onward and upward we go, struggling and striving, and hoping that the buds and blossoms of our desires will burst into glorious fruition ‘ere long.”– Mary Church Terrell

LIFT AS YOU CLIMB

The path you are on is not a solitary journey. Support other women colleagues by helping them receive recognition for the things they are particularly skilled at and their accomplishments.

Lastly, it is not about being perfect, enjoy the process while you are figuring things out. Enjoying the self-empowerment journey is more important than obsessing over whether you’re perfect. Concentrate on being perfectly you!

“Stay Tapped In to the wonderful things life has to offer.”

Dr. Myra

A Dynamic and engaging speaker, Dr. Myra Hubbard is available for Presentations, Conferences, Retreats, Training, and Consulting engagements. She can be reached at tapin2success.com or (707) 481-2268.