Three things that can make you more powerful in public life
Why power?
Power is, an often avoided topic and the ability to make people do what you want is fundamental to being taken seriously and not be taken advantage of. With its abstract nature of fluidity and inability to remain static, it’s a concept that’s often missed in a social setting and not being adept with the concept further lets a few powerful people enshrine their privilege onto you. Want to change that narrative and turn the tables over? Here are three golden rules to make you more powerful in different spheres of life.
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Read power: Observe
To read power means to pay attention to as many texts of power as you can. Here, you need to see the society as a set of texts. Don’t like how things are in your town? Read between the lines of the scenario that’s the cause of your disappointment, more than what’s evident. Understand why it turned out this way, who’s made it so, and who wants to keep it so. Study the strategies others employed to achieve their ends in this scenario. Observe more scenarios where one thing remains or changes because of someone powerful.
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Write Power: Speak
There are scenarios that will use frontal attack or indirection, coalitions or charismatic authority to gather power. Read these ways in which power is operating so you may write. To write is to merely practice power by speaking up.
It will first require you to believe that you have the right to write, to be an author of change.
You do. As with any kind of writing, you learn to speak up in an authentic voice and understanding your right and freedom of expression.
The power of Ideas and people
Organize your ideas, and then organize other people because remember power lies in numbers and numbers mean support. And that means you need to practice consensus building. You need to practice conflict. As with writing, it’s all about practice. Every day you have a chance to practice, in your town and beyond. Set objectives, then bigger ones. Watch yourself slowly changing patterns on how power operates.
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Power gives one more chance at life, maneuvering the people around them to work in ways that benefit one in achieving a particular motive. While many would totally disregard any discussion on power owing to the general perception that power capitalizes on dirty politics, lies, and deception achieving nothing but equally evil ends, we need to understand that it’s not always that way.
People like Nelson Mandela, Malala Yousufzai, and Abraham Lincoln used power to fight for noble ends, then how can we just generalize that power can only be corrupted?
Want to become another example of a power that’s not corrupted? Well, that’s a question of character and you have the power to build one.
(source: https://www.ted.com/talks/eric_liu_how_to_understand_power)
