Know Your Worth
With all the #MeToo stories, we have learned many things as a society about how some of us interact with others behind closed doors. In each of these stories, there seemed to be an imbalance of power--or perceived power. These men used their "power" to get what they wanted. The women acquiesced because they felt powerless. My question is, why do we feel so powerless? We are all just as "powerful" as the next human, and power is a social construct. I'm noticing we often fail to realize our self worth, so this post is my conscious effort to empower those around me. The world is full of narcissists and extremely insecure people, and through social media, we are diminishing the population that lives in the middle. Let's work together to move more people to the middle. Let's empower each other.
Thing is, one's current position in their workplace doesn't mean anything. There are people who work hard to get to where they are, and there are people who are handed everything on a silver platter. So everything matters, yet nothing matters. Our entire understanding of power is bullshit. And because it was all constructed, make an effort to deconstruct it. Constantly. Some of the best songs I've ever heard are not radio hits. Some of the smartest people I know don't get paid for their intelligence. Are these humans powerless because they aren't at the top of their gifted field? No. They are just as powerful as the next human. We somehow let self worth be determined by dollars and popularity. Fuck dollars. Fuck follower counts.
What about talents? What about ideas? What about the joy you radiate? What about your ability to heal? What about the intangible gifts you bring to the world? We have somehow brainwashed ourselves into believing our power as humans is determined by our net worth rather than the very fiber that makes us who we are--our humanity. And notice the words human and humanity are not gendered, hence fuck your thoughts if you come at me on some cis-men are more powerful than everyone else bullshit. We are all equal, and those are all constructions. Let's try deconstructing that shit to see what happens. Over time, we can dismantle all the structures within society that are helping to maintain these shitty ideas about who has power and who doesn't.
Feeling powerless in the bedroom can be deconstructed. Find your power. If your answer is no, be aggressive with that up front. If you are old enough to say no, you are also old enough to physically fight back, or tell people who are old enough who can fight for you. Abuse is not a secret. Tell someone. Tell EVERYONE. If you don't have friends and family to help you fight back, call a hotline, find a shelter. FIND YOUR POWER. Love yourself enough to never tolerate disrespect--and teach this to your children as soon as they learn to talk.
If you are an artist, do not allow people to take advantage of you. Your art is worth something greater than money. You are powerful, regardless of how many awards you have or your net worth. You are just as powerful as the next artist. The size of your current audience does not determine your ability to inspire. We are all born with the ability to be great at something, and the goal is to share those gifts with the community to uplift each other. Look at ants. Be more like ants.
It's all easier said than done, and I'm sorry for ranting and writing bad words, but we need to continuously work to deconstruct the social constructions that are hurting us. While we all live and thrive in different parts of the world and in different ways, we are all still human. This should bring us together and not divide us into the haves and have nots. It's not about what you have. It's about who you are--the beautiful energy you project. You are innately powerful. Share your power with others. Empower. Spread love. Repeat.
The End.