The Integration of Power

Are you a good person?

Then what is your aversion to wielding power?

What exactly are you afraid of?

Let’s start with a definition of power.

Power — the ability to turn will into action and action into desired outcome.

There are two components to power. These are:

• • the ability to turn will into action (mastery over the self)

• • the ability to turn action into desired outcome (mastery over the environment).

These two components are understood by the person who gets what they want.

Mastery over the Self.

This is captured by the word ‘discipline’.

If you want to do something, will you actually do it?

Can you cut through the excuses and don’t-want-tos?

There is more to this than willpower alone.

There are two specific tactics to make it through.

The first is to break down the objective into milestones.

Focus only on reaching the next milestone.

The next brushstroke, the next sentence, the next step.

The second is to have a clear idea of why you’re doing it.

Not the reason you tell other people to seem virtuous.

The real reason.

Don’t lie to yourself.

One well-known artist stated proudly that he went into art to have sex with lots of attractive women.

You’ll get much further if you know what’s really motivating you.

Mastery over the Environment.

Does what you want to happen actually happen?

Do your actions result in the desired outcome?

The second and more obvious measure of power is the individual’s ability to turn their actions into desired outcomes within their environment.

The power of the woman who seeks to create a peaceful environment for herself.

The power of the father who seeks best advantage for his children.

The power of the philanthropist, who draws great attention and resources to her cause.

The power of the hustler, who turns his energy into resources for himself and his community.

People assume that mastery will come with experience.

This is half true — we have all seen those who make the same mistakes countless times.

Growth doesn’t come from experience. It comes from intentional reflection of your experience.

The higher quality the reflection, the faster the growth.

Wisdom accrues in old age because people look towards the greater amount of life.

When people see more life behind them and ahead of them, they start looking backwards instead of forwards.

If you want to make the most of the time you have left, it’s worth looking backwards from time to time.

But don’t take my word for it.