Leading and power
Bill Clinton used to be president of America. He once said
Never pick a fight with people who buy ink by the barrel
What he meant is that it doesn't matter how good your job is; even if it's being a President, you can still lose your power to the newspapers. If they say nasty things about you, people will change what they think about you.
As disabled people, we often feel powerless - that we have no power.
This article asks us to think about power - are we more powerful than we think?
So where is the power?
Power can be in the job you have but that doesn't mean that job has to be the top job.
Power can also be about strength but is it always about being macho! It can be about what we have done in our life so far - what we know about life and people. Our knowledge can make us powerful.
So if you are thinking, I am not strong, I am not running a big company, STOP, you don't have to be doing these things to feel and be powerful. Some of the most powerful people we know are volunteers.
Thinking powerfully
Power is an important feeling for us to feel. Yes, feel. We all know when people use their power in a certain way it can make us feel terrible.
Sync 100 member Julie McNamara says if we say we are 'Proud to be Disabled' does this mean we are really saying that we are proud to have our power taken away.
Well it's true we do sometimes have our power taken away and we can and do fight these battles.
We've all felt powerful at times. It just might not look the way we think it should look. Think of a time you have felt powerful, just sitting still and not saying anything. Silence can be a very powerful thing to use!
Powerful Sync members
Sync member, Andy Kee, made powerful in decisions to leave sheltered employment and to get training to move into work that he loved. That's power!
Another Sync member, Jez Colborne loves music. This love of music allowed him to win a major music competition in Europe, leading the way through sharing his talent and 'gifts'. That's power!
Hard power and soft power
Hard power is what we usually think of when we think about power - people making or forcing us to do something.
Soft power is different. Its when we work with people to get them to join us and work with us. Soft power is attractive - it makes people want to join in and change things.
Think about power and how it makes you feel. Think about who uses power with you. And think about the power you use.
All leaders are powerful - what kind of power do you use?
From all of us at Sync
