Absolutley - we define how others treat us. :)

@Dawn Hill - Yay! You'll enjoy - awesome peeps - and we all learn from each other :)

@Matthew Hill well at minimum I’m glad you have learned of this cycle. I hope one day it is fully resolved. Thank you for teaching me about this!

My fear was speaking in public. I know many have this fear and so there was some comfort with knowing I wasn't alone. But the Universe has a different idea in mind for me - that I wasn't supposed to stick to the sidelines. It started like this for my introverted, non confident self of my 20's: Answering the phone. A receptionist to Executive EA. Late 20's/30's - Recruiter - blindly calling people in a market saturated with jobs and candidates who had all the options possible. Then further into development of Recruiter and training of others. Then in my 40's with my side job - one on one clients convos were easy peasy now... always meeting folks where they are at. Universe said let's step it up a notch - you need to be public facing. Excuse me what?!? Small workshops. And TikTok. Then... large workshops (50+ people) and podcasts. Now there is a vision - I will be on stage somewhere - with many people - perhaps a panel. And teaching. What in the world?!? (See there is still some fear there, right? Or maybe uncomfortableness?) I've done the inner child work - is this a solution to a missed need from my youth? No. It's a path and it's been fear based with each step. But the step, once in it and working throgh it, becomes easier and then you master it. And then the fear comes in again to test and to prep for the next step. Life is so interesting!! :)

@Matthew Hill

@Matthew Hill

I think we need to define what Power is. It can be subjective based on mindframe, right?

@Matthew Hill - I believe you define this really well. Power to a passerby = someone in "leadership" but that often means "control" or "force". But Power can also mean personal power - the "power of choice", the "power of strength", the "power of courage and taking the first step". These latter ones to me are the Positive Power that you speak to and influence understanding of in your path. For fun I went to chatgpt and asked (without tainting the waters): Define Power and it's response: ********* Power is the ability to produce an effect, influence outcomes, or control something. It shows up in a few key ways depending on context: - General: The capacity to act, influence, or create change - Physical (science): The rate at which work is done or energy is transferred - Social: The ability to influence people, decisions, or situations - Personal: Inner strength, confidence, or the ability to direct your life At its core, power is about impact—how effectively something (or someone) can create change. If you want to go a layer deeper… power isn’t just force—it’s direction + intention + action. *********** I think this resonates well with me - you have the general - the capcity to act or influence, physical - the science of it, social - the influence again and personal - the inner strenght. I think what we can take from this convo is the ability of our own power to influence - open mindedness and perspective vs. the default settings we have as a collective... that power is in the hands of someone or something else. ;-)