your sanctuary of re-membrance
if this moment of uprising is showing us anything it's that we have the power. we've always had it, we just had to wake up and step into it. it's time we shifted our focus from waiting to be given what we need and instead start to create the societies we want to live in. we all participate in the shaping of cultural norms through our every day actions. every decision either perpetuates what is or it plants a seed for a different way of living. these are very small things but if everyone adopted even one thing, we would slowly start to actualize the changes we want to see.
let your values guide how you spend your money
for the responsible adults who budget, what does your spreadsheet say about the things you value? i came across a tweet a while back that said, |budgets are moral documents| and what a word! be it a government, an organization or an individual, the places we spend our money say something about what we value and how we solidify our place in the world. it's no secret that our society worships money and that we've given it way more power than makes sense and as long as capitalism still dictates the structures of our society, this will remain a fact. that being said, we can circumvent the reality of it by spending consciously. where are we spending our money and why? how are we propelling a new world forward with our spending patterns?
ask your employer the uncomfortable questions
there's a misconception that job interviews are a one way conversation. this is far from true. interviews are also an opportunity for the interviewee to assess whether the job is a good fit for them— kind of like a first date of sorts. one way to quickly understand what an organization's values are is to ask where they get their money from. if it's a non-profit, who are the donors? how they make their profit is also just as important of a question. the answers to these questions usually give a pretty good idea about the greater effect you'll have on society at large through your work.
make it a habit to take inventory of what you're allowing into your experience
it's true that we can't control what other people do nor do we have to excuse their behavior in the name of self awareness and healing but we can pay attention to the role we play in perpetuating certain beliefs and patterns because of past experiences. when we fall victim to what has happened to us, we forget that we have the power to invite new experiences into our world. say you had terrible experiences with friendships in the past— you have the option to either dwell on the bad luck you've had and the negativity that has infiltrated your ability to trust and be open or you can focus your energy on the ways you can take your power back. who do you need to be to attract healthy, fulfilling friendships? what boundaries do you need to have in place to make sure that you're not giving space to anything that doesn't build you up?
in summation, we are the power we have been seeking. all we have to do is hone in on it.
