Credit: Kelly Rudolph
Empowered women are those who give themselves permission and authority to think and do as they see fit as opposed to a woman who goes along with what others say and do - things that are out of alignment with her values, feelings or beliefs because it is the status quo. Women are nurturers by default and much of what we do, when we become empowered, is help other women to do the same.
Empowered women stand on their own two feet. They do not have to be boisterous, controlling or bitchy. Empowered women are quietly powerful and believe they are worthy of having the future and relationships they desire.
People who dislike or fear empowered women are insecure, weak individuals who feel threatened by the strength of someone else.
In my experience, there have been two types of people who fear empowered women:
Insecure women who lack the confidence to take responsibility for and control of their lives and resent any woman who does because she mirrors what they lack
Insecure men; many of whom say they like strong women but have the intention of breaking them, their spirit, their passion for life and their ties with others who inspire them to be empowered
Notice that both types of people are insecure. It takes guts to stand up for yourself. It takes guts to be who you truly want to be instead of falling into the rut of being who you think you should be or worse yet, who other people think you should be!
The solution is a catch-22 because empowered women love to empower others but the ones who often need the help are the same ones who project their insecurity through arrogance and dislike for the very person who could help them - the empowered woman.
When we are strong, we love our families with more conviction, emotion, vulnerability, poise and power than they have ever been loved with before because we are confident and finally recognize our value.
The only person who should be afraid of an empowered woman is one who has mistreated, taking advantage of or used her because that person is on their way out of the empowered woman's life.
Unfortunately, relationships with friends and significant others sometimes end when a woman becomes who she truly wants to be. Realize these are relationships that may have enabled her to stay stuck in her rut. When she gets into her groove, the people who will stay by her side and those she will attract will cheer her on and celebrate her success and happiness. They will learn from her, not be threatened by her.
Who in your life would go and who would stay if YOU became empowered and the woman you really want to be?