Powerinity – Very Personal Power

I get a lot of questions regarding my use of the word POWERinity. Rightly so, I made it up. It started out sort of whimsically, but it represents a very powerful concept.

Back in 2007 when I first penned (typed, word processed…sigh…it just doesn’t have the same ring, does it?) W.A.R. – Watch, Assess, React: The Ultimate Guide to Personal POWER and Safety. (Amazon link) I struggled with the inevitable connection between femininity and power was in its relative infancy and I wanted to make a distinction between anything that conjured gender specificity and intrinsic power. I searched and searched for a term, but nothing quite fit…so I made one up.

The following is an excerpt from the second edition of W.A.R. This holiday season let’s allow these words to remind us of our personal responsibility to be the best we can be, regardless of the expectations other may have. YOU are the sovereign of your life…no one else. Enjoy!

I’m not comfortable suggesting men need to be more masculine or women need to be less feminine. Or that both sexes need to get in touch with their masculinity. Let’s do something different. Let’s let men be men and women be women and reel in our separate “inities.” 

When we talk about developing our personal power, let’s acknowledge we all have inner strengths that look and talk and act differently. I propose we develop our individual POWERinity, apart from and inclusive of our genders.

Right now you’re saying, “Ok, Tonya, so what in the world is POWERinity? How do I get it? Do I want it?”

POWERinity is the heart of who you are when you’re not concerned with embarrassing yourself, looking cool, saying the right thing, doing what you’re “supposed to,” or being someone you’re not.

POWERinity is the piece of you screaming to get out, silenced only by your fears and perceptions of your role in the world. And how do you get it? You have it. All you have to do is step aside and let it be what it’s meant to be. 

POWERinity is your VERY personal power.