What is Centering Power?
The ability to manage reactivity and sustain a calm and grounded presence especially in times of uncertainty, change, and complex life experiences
Are you easily thrown off center when someone or something forces a change in your plans?
When you need to make a decision, do you get stressed or even paralyzed?
Do you attack, internally or externally, when someone gives you feedback or criticism?
If so, you may want to cultivate more Centering Power.
Learning to deepen this power will help you feel strong and calm, even amidst conflict or challenging circumstances.
About Centering Power
You know those moments when you blow up and say or do something you’ll regret later?
Or when you withdraw, sulk, and become distracted by resentment and judgment?
This is reactivity in action. This kind of reactivity is in our mammalian nature.
We’re wired to protect ourselves against perceived threats, often by attacking or withdrawing to create a sense of safety and control.
Yet — we also have the power to interrupt this pattern, and course-correct, by calling on our Centering Power.
Cultivating our inner witness is an essential ally to help us bolster this power. Each time we neutrally and compassionately observe our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, we make space to consciously choose rather than react from subconscious and habituated operating scripts.
Strengthening our Centering Power doesn’t mean we’ll feel centered 100% of the time. It means we’ll be more able to recognize when we’re off center, and have tools, practices, and discipline to call ourselves back home into a grounded and connected way of engaging with ourselves and others.
“Between stimulus and response there is a space.
In that space is our power to choose our response.
In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”
When you’re in your Centering Power you most likely feel:
capable of navigating complexity and chaos without exploding or collapsing
receptive to others’ needs while asserting healthy boundaries
flexible and adaptable when plans change
grounded in your vision, leadership, and the values you stand for
When you’re out of rhythm with your Centering Power you might:
blame, withdraw, or attack through guilt trips or criticism when you feel vulnerable or out of control
collapse into patterns of shame, self-doubt, and self-aggression when you make mistakes or disappoint others
feel paralyzed and overwhelmed by decision making
manage anxiety with hurtful coping mechanisms or addictive behaviors
Self-inquiry:
When was the last time you were in your Centered Power? What were the conditions that supported you to center yourself?
What is your go-to strategy when you feel threatened? Do you freeze and disassociate? Do you flee and withdraw or run? Do you react and attack? What situations trigger your shadow self?
How do you self-regulate and manage your triggers and reactivity? (i.e. meditation, exercise, talk to a friend, journal)
Do you want to stay in touch?
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Learn more about Centering Power:
Podcast Episodes & blog articles
On the podcast:
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On the blog:
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