It’s a very important time to be a woman right now. Between the #metoo movement, #timesup, and women’s marches around the world, we’re in a pivotal time for women’s rights and equality. Although it’s not very empowering to consider ourselves victims of history, it’s undeniable that because of current and historical gender norms, we have all been made to feel at one time or another, either treated unequally, told we can’t do something or have something because we are women, or made to feel physically, emotionally, or mentally helpless at the hands of a man.

Physical, emotional and sexual abuse, unequal pay and career opportunities, and even just being called a bitch for being a powerful or assertive woman—these are all byproducts of a male dominated world culture. But ladies, things are finally changing, and we’re lucky enough to witness and be part of the change. It’s exciting times for us women, and there’s no better time to learn how to empower yourself as a woman.

What Does An Empowered Woman Look Like?

We are exposed to powerful women all the time and all around us, and most of us have a female idol, or mentor that inspires us and exudes confidence and power. The question is, how do we empower ourselves to be like our idols and mentors? 

Cosmic Goddesses Rise Up!

After centuries of being made to feel inferior to and by men, it’s time for us to be heard, respected, and treated equally. There is no better time to feel proud and optimistic about being a woman. Together, with our roaring voices and unwavering strength, we have already changed so much, but the battle isn’t over yet.

The culture and standards are changing, but it’s still up to us to ensure the enforcement of our equality and respect. It’s important for women to stand up for ourselves and each other, in order to really take our message of equality home and to stick it to the man, no pun intended.

We will no longer be victims, and we no longer need to stay silent and boxed into traditional gender roles and stereotypes. It’s our time to speak our truths, take back our power, and unite to change the world once and for all. But every drop in the pond counts, so by empowering yourself, you help to empower women as a whole. Here are some helpful tips on how to empower yourself as a woman!

7 Tips On How To Empower Yourself As A Woman:

1. Stand Up For Yourself.

This one has always been tricky for women in particular, because we’ve always been told to keep our opinions to ourselves, never express negative feelings, and to be “ladylike,” polite, agreeable, a people-pleaser. Any deviation from these qualities gets us labeled crazy, unstable, or bitches, and I admit standing up for yourself doesn’t tend to go hand in hand with these stereotypes of a “lady,” but that’s ok.

It may feel uncomfortable at first to find your voice and stand up for yourself, trust me I know. But that discomfort is better than years of pent up resentment and anger brewing inside you from all the times you’ve been too shy or afraid to stand up for yourself. And what’s the worst that can happen, someone calls you a bitch? Just brush it off, after all they’re just upset that you put them in their place, and couldn’t think of anything more intelligent to say. And in the end, at least they’ll know that you’re no doormat!

2. Say NO To People.

Hand in hand with standing up for yourself, saying no to people can also feel uncomfortable or unnatural if you’ve been raised with the typical stereotypes of people-pleasing, Stepford-wife-type ideals of a “lady.” Saying “no” is the first step to standing up for yourself, and a great place to start.

Have you ever found yourself making plans that you are already dreading, to be polite? Say no! Be assertive! Why should you be made to do something you don’t want to for mere appearances? Ever find yourself stretching yourself thin and committing to help out a million people just because you’re afraid of what people might think if you didn’t? I’m here to tell you that that’s nonsense.

It’s not only perfectly ok, but better for your own mental well-being to say no when you can’t or don’t want to help out. Take control of your life. Remember, you need personal time for yourself and to do the things that are important to you. You are your first priority and it’s ok to believe that. Putting yourself first is a form of self-love and self-respect, which are both vital to empowering yourself.

That’s not to say you need to be a self-centered selfish person who only does things for themselves, it’s just to say you come first. Helping others is second. If helping others is causing too much stress in your life and hurting you, then it’s not worth it and that’s ok. Feel confident saying no to things that interfere with your goals, happiness, and well-being.

3. Think Positive, Empowering Thoughts.

To be empowered, you have to think empowered. Mind over matter, ladies! This tip is all about recognizing and catching negative thoughts when they happen, and making a conscious effort to replace them with positive ones. Your mind is a powerful tool, and believing you are powerful is being powerful.

It’s all about choosing to shift your thought patterns and beliefs to positive ones. This is easier said than done and can take practice, but it all begins with having awareness of your thoughts and switching out negative ones that don’t serve you with positive ones. You are your number one supporter, so it’s important to stay optimistic and believe in yourself.

Your opinion of yourself is the most important one, the only one that matters really. To maintain support for yourself you have to maintain your positive attitude and empowered thoughts! Remember that even just forcing a smile causes a chemical reaction in your brain that releases dopamine and serotonin, so you can trick your body into a better mood by just smiling! Now, if it’s mind over matter, imagine how powerful it is to trick your mind into being happy with positive thoughts!

4. Choose To Be A Warrior, Not A Victim.

Another key mentality shift is that from victim to warrior. An empowered woman is nobody’s victim. This shift is all about taking your power back and shifting your thoughts and mind frame from that of prey to predator. A victim is someone helpless that something is done to, a warrior is strong and is the do-er.

Being empowered is all about being in control of your life and even when you do feel victimized by someone or something, taking that situation, learning from it and turning it into something productive and constructive—that’s a warrior. It’s all about realizing no matter how down or helpless or hopeless you feel, you always have a choice.

Just knowing that you always have the choice and ability to change your situation, is one of the most empowering things of all. Even when you feel you don’t have a choice in a given situation, you at least always have a choice in the perspective you have on it and how you respond to it. Your perspective is something nobody can ever take from you.

5. Take Care Of Yourself.

Like we mentioned in Tip 2, making yourself your number 1 priority is very important when you want to feel empowered. That entails taking care of yourself physically, mentally, emotionally and even financially. You have to make time for the things that are important to you in all these aspects of your life.

Probably the easiest way to start taking care of yourself is exercising that power of choice you have and choosing healthy lifestyle habits, like sleeping enough, eating healthy, exercising, and passing on toxic things like drugs and smoking. Healthy women tend to be confident women, women who love, and respect themselves enough to value their mind and body and take care of them.

When you’re physically healthy, your mind tends to be clearer and your emotions better balanced. And if you’re mentally, emotionally, and physically stable, you have more energy and positivity, helping you to work longer and more efficiently towards your financial goals.

Working out in and of itself has so many great benefits that go hand in hand with empowering yourself. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t feel accomplished after a good workout, and exercise does wonders for stress relief and a positive mood. But remember that relaxing and recharging is just as important for your well-being, both physically and mentally.

6. Only Surround Yourself With People That Empower You And Treat You As An Equal.

We’ve all had to deal with people who treat us like they’re superior to us, or who don’t respect us the way they should. That is unacceptable, no excuses. You should either cut those people out of your life and/or demand they treat you equally and with respect. You don’t ever have to take crap from anyone, and you are inferior to nobody.

Choosing to surround yourself only with supportive and respectful people who treat you as an equal is something you always have control over, and ensures that you have an environment that’s conducive to feeling empowered. It’s important to always be around positive people that pick you up because negative people can drain your energy and nobody needs to waste their time being drained!

There’s also nothing more empowering than having a great support system to turn to when you feel down, cuz let’s face it, even the most powerful women have bad days, and we need positive people to lean on sometimes! Powerful women support each other, and confidence is contagious!

7. Empower Others And Give Back.

Empowered women empower and support other women, like we just touched on. It’s important, especially with what’s happening now with women’s rights, for us women to stand together and empower each other. Even just finding our voice and telling our stories can be enough to empower others, you never know when someone shares your experiences and if hearing your story can inspire hope and strength in someone.

By sharing your story, maybe you even just encourage someone with a similar background to accomplish or strive for their dreams. We are only as strong as our weakest link, so it’s important for us to ensure that we are all empowered as women. That we all have the confidence, self-love, and self-respect to stand up for ourselves so that inequality and abuse of women becomes a thing of the past.

And no matter where you are, there is always a struggling girl or woman. One awesome way to give back and empower others is to mentor young girls and women in your city, to be that positive support system for someone to lean on from time to time. Giving back is also incredibly rewarding and only empowers you more by giving you an increased sense of value and power, knowing you can make such a huge and positive difference in someone else’s life.

When you help others, you help yourself. And it doesn’t even have to be as time consuming as mentoring, even just being nice to those you encounter throughout your day, saying good morning with a smile, spreading good vibes and positivity is giving back, too!

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