I have it. You have it. As does your neighbor, your best friend, your partner, your children. We all have it. It may not always feel that way, but we do. We all have the power to choose.
The minute I realized that, (that I always have a choice in any given moment), a feeling of empowerment hit me. And then the real awareness set in; Choice = Personal Power. “YES! That’s it. That is how I hold on to my personal power in any given situation. I choose.” I was so excited by this new awareness I almost pounded on my chest like King Kong while screaming at the top of my lungs, “I am woman, hear me roar.”
Here’s the kicker, while I always have a choice I may forget to exercise my power to choose. Yes, I may forget because I’m far too caught up in something else, for example, a “woe is me” moment, stress, fear, etc. It happens. And while it does, it’s important to remember that the power to choose is never too far away.
WHAT I GET TO CHOOSE
While I can’t always control what’s going on around me, like other people’s behavior, their responses, or the weather, I do have a choice in what I do. I do have a choice in what I say. I do have a choice in what I feel. I do have a choice in how I act.
As a matter of fact, I get to choose…
What I put in my body.
I get to choose if I want to eat vegetables or if I want to eat a chocolate chip cookie. My choice. And then it becomes my choice how I feel about what I ate, i.e. good or guilty
How I respond.
When something pisses me off, I get to choose how I respond. I get to choose to be calm in that moment or fly off the handle. My choice.
The people I surround myself with consistently.
Again my choice. I get to choose who I wish to hang out with. I’ve become very particular about who I surround myself with and not because I’m a social snob. My energy is easily impacted. I’m kind of like a sponge in that respect… so I’m very careful not to surround myself with people who are oozing negative energy.
What I think.
Oh yeah, I get to choose that too. When a negative thought pops into my head, (which happens regularly), I get to choose to invite it to stay awhile or dismiss it. If I decide to have coffee with that thought or give that thought voice, I know I’m choosing to do so.
“Attitude is a choice. Happiness is a choice. Optimism is a choice. Kindness is a choice. Giving is a choice. Respect is a choice. Whatever choice you make makes you. Choose wisely.”
― Roy T. Bennett
What I feel.
You guessed it; I choose what I feel knowing that all my feelings are valid. That means that there are times when I choose to feel the crappy feelings to my core. As a recovering stuffer, I’ve come to understand that feeling things through is important in order to move forward.
What I do.
I definitely choose what I do, without a doubt. I choose my actions, (sometimes not all that carefully), but I do choose them. I choose my work in this world. I choose what I do at any given moment. Sometimes I choose to do nothing and that’s still a choice.
Where are you consistently in choice? This is where the awareness begins…knowing where you engage your power to choose and where you could be engaging it more.
THE BENEFITS OF CHOOSING
Here’s what the power to choose does. When we engage and leverage it, we…
Live life by our own design.
We make ourselves priorities and in turn so do others.
We have fewer messes to clean up.
We protect/restore our energy.
We don’t allow feelings to fester.
We make better decisions.
We learn from our mistakes.
But most importantly, we take back our own personal power from any given situation or person.
How many of those results are you currently experiencing? Want more?
HOW TO LEVERAGE CHOOSING
Ok, so you’re going to think I’m crazy nuts, which is cool…it’s your choice after all. 😉 What I’m about to share with you is so simple it does sound crazy.
The way to leverage the power to choose in any given situation is to ask yourself this question (or a variation that fits.); “What do I choose?”
Yep, that’s it. When you find yourself feeling overwhelmed, fearful, ticked off, small, powerless, stuck between decisions, etc. ask yourself that question. Then see what happens. See how you feel.
Are you game? I do hope so, because for the next 21 days I invite you to consciously, deliberately, and intentionally engage and leverage your own power to choose. Of course it really is down to you and what you choose. 😉
Until next time, here’s to the power of choosing!! Sending you much love and light….
Originally published at www.whatswithinu.com.
Originally published at medium.com