Pop quiz hot shot!

Don’t worry. There’s just one question.

Who’s in charge of your life?

If you answered, “I am,” then congratulations! You’re right. You are the only person ultimately in charge of your life – good or bad, right or wrong, healthy or not, happy or not.

The power to create the life you want is within YOU, nestled alongside that awesome concept of personal responsibility. They’re joined at the hip, those two, and that’s what I want to write about today.

This is on my mind because I sometimes hear from people who feel they have no control over their lives.

❌ 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑓𝑒𝑒𝑙 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑖𝑠 ℎ𝑎𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 “𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚” 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑏𝑜𝑑𝑦.
❌ 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑝𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚𝑠𝑒𝑙𝑣𝑒𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑡𝑙𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑥𝑒𝑠, 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑎𝑟𝑒.
❌ 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑤𝑎𝑛𝑡 𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑏𝑜𝑑𝑦 𝑒𝑙𝑠𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑓𝑖𝑥 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑛’𝑡 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑔, 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒 ℎ𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑡 𝑎𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑤ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑖𝑡 𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑔𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑒.

So, let’s clear this up right now.

The key to unlocking your own power and exercising more control over your life is understanding that it’s all on you. You hold the reins. And you have to understand that you don’t know everything you need.

This means you get to “take credit” for all the good stuff in your life – because you have woven them all together into your awesome, beautiful life.

Even the “bad” stuff that was done to you. Granted, it might not have been your “fault,” but it’s now your responsibility to make it better. If you don’t, then who will?

Once you start to see this, I want you to think about these ideas next.

✅ 𝑯𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉 𝒐𝒇 𝒀𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝑷𝒂𝒔𝒕: Your past is your greatest source of inner strength. Remember your successes and take inspiration from your own self! YOU DID ALL THOSE THINGS! Similarly, remember your setbacks and learn from them.

✅ 𝑺𝒆𝒕 𝑺𝑴𝑨𝑹𝑻 𝑮𝒐𝒂𝒍𝒔: Let’s get strategic. Your goals should be Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Track your progress, adapt as needed, and dance a little victory jig for every small win.

✅ 𝑩𝒐𝒍𝒅𝒍𝒚 𝑫𝒆𝒄𝒍𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒀𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝑷𝒂𝒕𝒉: Tell others and yourself about your new direction. Do this without apology. Too often we mumble something like, “Well, I guess I shouldn’t really say this, but I would like to be…” Nonsense! Say it. Own it. Do it.

✅𝑾𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒂 𝑺𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝑵𝒆𝒕𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌: Help others, share your opinion when it’s needed, and help where you can. By the same token, don’t be shy to ask for help when you need it. Yes, asking for help is part of being powerful. Just ask any powerful person you admire!

✅ 𝑻𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝑪𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒀𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇 – 𝑩𝒐𝒅𝒚, 𝑴𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑺𝒑𝒊𝒓𝒊𝒕: our well-being is non-negotiable. Care for your body with exercise, nourishing food, and restful sleep. Cultivate your mind through positive habits and manage stress. Speak your emotions, embrace spiritual practices that resonate with you – even on tough days.

This journey isn’t always a breeze. But every step you take builds on the one before. Success begets success. Power grows more power.

And it’s all in YOU.