The Blockers

 1.   
Ego — This is major. And I’m using the term “ego” in the spiritual sense, not the Freudian sense. In psychological terms, you need a strong ego to differentiate yourself from the rest of the world, and that’s fine. When spiritual teachers talk about ego, they mean that part of us that is out to hold us back, keep us down, and go for comfort, greed, and “me first” to the detriment of our ultimate aims. The power position: Seek to know and act from your Higher Self.

2.   
Low self-concept — While identifying with the ego will hold you back, so will not valuing yourself and your divine heritage and identity. “You are the light of the world,” Jesus said (Matthew 5:14). The power position: Believe this. Know it. Act on it.

3.   
Fatigue — You can’t accomplish anything in this life if you’re too tired to do it. The power position: Guard your energy. Sleep enough. Don’t overwork. Say no to extraneous commitments.

4.   
Negative influences — Mom said not to play with the kid who’s a bad influence; her good advice still applies. People who are down on you or life or themselves (usually, it starts with themselves and spreads out to encompass all of life, you included) can block your power. So can a glut of downer information from the media and elsewhere. The power position: Cultivate helpful friendships and associations. When you start to feel your power being drawn out, look at where you’ve been hanging out and with whom; then change that environment.

5.   
Lack of focus. You have to know where you’re going in order to get there. Keep your eye on the prize. Of course you can take breaks and vacations and read a fun novel and go to the movies, but through it all, keep that point of focus ever in the back (when it’s not in the front) of your mind. The power position: know where you’re going and refuse to get sidetracked.

6.   
Turning it over (to another person, an addiction, etc.). When your well-being depends on another person’s approval, or on having another drink or placing another bet or finishing the bag of cookies, your power takes a lengthy hike. The power position: Maintain your identity, your dignity, and your boundaries. If you’re in bondage to anything, get out. (If this applies, I love the work they do at All Addicts Anonymous.)

7.   
Fear. Other than the fear that propels you to fight or flee as necessary, this emotion uses power like a ’67 Caddie used gasoline. The power position: Face fear by walking through it, getting support, and praying like your mean it. 

8.   
Lack of flexibility. Things happen. Things change. Detours are a part of every journey. If you can’t bend and move and adjust accordingly, you’re continually bumped and bruised and battered. The power position: Go with the proverbial flow. Always have a Plan B (or C or L or W). Know that a shift is not a surrender.

9.   
Lack of faith. This life is challenging under any circumstances. To try to navigate the rough waters of 85 years on planet Earth without some “captain,” some sense of Higher Power or Higher Purpose, is really tough. Whatever your personal conception of this is, it’s where your power comes from. The power position: have faith and live as if you do. If you don’t have it now, act as if you do and see what happens.

10.   Being stuck in
the way it’s always been. “We’ve always been poor…I’ve always been fat…I’ve never been good at numbers….”—the affirmations of the disempowered. Just because something was a fact for five years or twenty-five years doesn’t mean that it’s the Truth about your life. When you get unstuck, you connect with the power to change. The power position: Live this day as a new, fresh start. History is history, something to build on, not live in. Today you can do something different, take a new road.