. . . than “I can” messages as a child, you are probably having more “I can’t” than
“I can” experiences as an adult. In other words, if you heard messages from parents and other
authority figures that told you that your opinion didn’t count and that your actions didn’t
matter, you are likely to have subconscious beliefs that mirror those ideas. The result is
often a person with deep insecurities about their ability to positively affect
the course of their lives.
Some people overcompensate for this feeling of powerlessness by making
a career out of becoming powerful. Usually this sense of power is achieved by acquiring money,
possessions and social status. Unfortunately, these external signs of power seldom satisfy the
gnawing feeling of insecurity and powerlessness within. People with authentic power can have an
abundance of money, possessions and social status, but their personal power does not come from
the things they have, but rather from who they are.