Empowerment Through Knowledge

Introduction

This discussion borders on the theme: Empowerment through Knowledge. We would be approaching this discussion from some familiar angles to give ourselves a chance of deepening our understanding of the concept.

In our society today, many have come to understand empowerment as an act of kind gesture by well-meaning individuals, organizations and government to less privileged or less glamourous persons and groups. Under this framework, donations ranging from money, food items, equipment, machinery, tools and other forms of resources are presented to individuals or groups and termed empowerment.

Politicians have made this all the more popular by presenting sums of money and also donating some equipment and other gift items to people and tag it as empowerment. This has really made many in our society to view empowerment as a mere presentation of gifts and largesse in the various forms that they have always come.

But is this really in tandem with empowering someone in the true sense of the word? The answer is no!

Are these donations able to make any impact or able to positively move the status of the recipients from point A to point B? These would be briefly x-rayed in our discussions.

Empowerment Explained

Empowerment, in simple terms, means “making someone to have power or someone making himself to have power”. It is the process where an individual or a group of individuals is equipped or endowed with more power.

What then is Power??

Power comes from the Latin word potere, which means "to be able”.

In the context of this discussion, Power can be defined as the ability or capacity to do something or act in a particular way or to direct or influence the behaviour of others or the course of events. In essence, inability of an individual or lack of the capacity to do the things expected simply indicates a lack of power.

In science, power is defined as the rate of doing work which is mathematically translated as Work done in a given time or Work done/Time taken. In this situation, we can tell that power exists based on evidences that we see.??

When applied to an individual, power is when an individual puts himself or herself in a position where the individual is able to take control of his or her own life, and not allowing others to control it.

This sounds simple but, in practice, taking control could be a really complicated process. A person must be equipped with certain capabilities before being in such control of his or her life in the manner that is desired.

For someone to have power comes with lots of abilities. One has got to have a certain degree of influence, possess adequate economic abilities and be able to fulfil necessary responsibilities.

So what is Empowerment??

We can sum all of these lines to say that empowerment?means the process whereby a person or group of persons is equipped with power and capabilities in terms of resources, employment, aid or other forms of support that enables such person to attain or acquire and then possess more economic power and status?to be able to function effectively in the society. The emphasis here is on someone successfully moving from one level, grade or status to another, possibly as a result of personal efforts or support from some external sources.

One of the first steps to actually creating a culture or system of effective empowerment is by causing a paradigm shift in the way we understand and view the concept of empowerment. Empowerment is not a measure of how much aid, support or learning that someone gets. It is a measure of how much success someone gains as a result of these support or aids. If we plant seeds but the seeds fail to germinate let alone yield fruits, we cannot speak of ourselves as a people who produced plants and this is irrespective of how much was invested. That effort would be considered fruitless. For us to take pride in anything, results must have been produced or else it would be counted as exercise in futility. So empowerment is a measure of the result that the efforts we have applied have yielded.

Empowerment borders on someone successfully having those powers, resources, state or status where he is able to function effectively in the society. It therefore goes without saying that donating money or packages or machinery to someone does not automatically translate to empowerment. It may well mean that someone got donations that did not eventually add to the person’s ability to function effectively either by reason of mismanagement or lack of ability to utilize such resources to add value to one’s self. Such efforts could not, in the end, empower an individual. That’s what it is.

Recall that we said that scientifically speaking, power is the rate of doing work which means, Work done in a given time or Work done/Time taken. Work is said to be done when a particular distance is covered within a given time, meaning that there has to be a positive movement from Point A to Point B within a particular time frame for us to say that work has been done. So irrespective of the efforts applied if we are unable to cause a movement from Point A to Point B, then scientifically speaking, no work has been done. If you apply this to this discussion, it means that empowerment can only be said to have happened if whatever efforts, perquisites, gifts or donations a person or group of persons get, is able to cause an improvement of the status or power ranking of the individual.

The mind-bugging question therefore is: to which extent do the things we consider as empowerment actually make a person rise above a previously low level to an improved level in a sustainable manner? If someone who lives a very low life gets a million naira gift but end up squandering the money in a manner that he ends up returning to the previous low life of still not able to fend for himself, could it be said that the person has been empowered? Empowered from what state to what state? The one million naira he got could have been utilized to achieve some development but it was not. What has simply happened here is that the person got a million naira gift that was not able to add a sustainable value to his life and so that individual has not been empowered. That money could at best be described as an opportunity that could have led to the individual being empowered but which unfortunately did not happen.

How do People Get Empowered?

Empowerment is a deliberate activity. It has to be an agenda that is desired. Firstly someone has got to have the desire to move from one level to another. Next would be to determine what is required to take one to the next level and then what would be required to sustain the new level.

Every individual has a responsibility to develop himself and become empowered. This could be through self-help or by getting some external support.

Steps to Personal Empowerment

?At this point, let us examine some steps to follow as well as some ways through which an individual could get empowered

·??????Identify your goal that is focused on power

Brian Tracy said: “The great summary statement of all religions, philosophies, metaphysics, psychology, and success is this: You become what you think about most of the time. Your outer world ultimately becomes a reflection of your inner world. Your outer world of experience mirrors back to you what you think about most of the time. Whatever you think about continuously emerges in your reality.”

As a start point, we have to identify the goals that we desire in the most appropriate and clearest of terms and then focus on achieving those goals. Attainment of those goals is attainment of power of some sorts.

·??????Increase your knowledge

Now that you are aware of what you need – talking about your goals and ambitions - next would be to determine the relevant knowledge that is needed to gain the empowerment that you require. Yes we get empowered through knowledge. Increase your knowledge and increase your empowerment.

According to Horace Mann, an American educator: “Every addition to true knowledge is an addition to human power”

To be able to elevate yourself, gaining from a skill or knowledge, you need to first acquire the attendant skills and then apply them.

Great writers of known repute first needed to gain immense knowledge of the art of writing before performing on the big stage. Great sportsmen first of all needed to gain the knowledge (the how-to) of such sports for them to be able to win the competitions of those sports to gain fame and higher status. The same applies to other areas of human endeavour.

When there is knowledge gap, greatness and empowerment cannot be attained.

·??????Increase your skills and competence

You may need to improve your skills to become more influential. However, as you start to talk to people more, and try to influence them, you will rapidly learn what works, and therefore develop your skills!

·??????Increase your self-efficacy, or belief that you can achieve.

Before you take action, you need to believe that you can achieve. Knowing that you have the necessary information can help. Understanding your strengths and weaknesses will also help you to understand where you are most likely to achieve.

·??????Take action - and keep taking action

Personal empowerment means not being ‘knocked back’ by the first problem we encounter, but having the resilience and persistence to keep going and seek other ways to achieve our goals.

·??????Assess your impact

Empowerment is about changing the impact that you have on others and on events. It is therefore important to assess your impact. At first, you may not see much change, but even small changes count as success.

Reflect on John Maxwell’s 3rd Law of Growth - Law of the Mirror

People don't reach their potentials because of low self-esteem.

Ask yourself: Do you like what you see in the mirror?

Recognize your value and begin to add value to yourself. When you invest in yourself, you'll see more value in yourself (you are worth investing in). Don't live your life according to what people expect of you. Be more concerned about what you think of yourself - you don't have to accept what people say you will be.

Steps to build your self-image

???????Guard your self-talk: self-talk comes from our upbringing; why needlessly add to your problems with negative self-talk?

???????Stop comparing yourself to others: you either become discouraged or proud; only compare yourself to you.

???????Move beyond your limiting beliefs: believe you will be great; if you limit what you will do, you limit what you can do:

o??????Identify limiting belief.

o??????Determine how it limits you.

o??????Decide how you want to be.

o??????Create turnaround statement that restates who you want to be.

???????Add value to others: hard to feel bad about yourself if you do something good for someone else; also people will value you more.

???????Do the right thing even though it is hard: be true to yourself and your values.

???????Practice a small discipline daily in a specific area of your life: apply this in an area in your life that seems overwhelming.

???????Celebrate small victories; "it's good that I did that, it's good for me".

???????Embrace a positive vision of your life.

???????Practice the one-word strategy: select one word to best describe you - what you focus on expands.

???????Take responsibility for your life.

???????Know that you matter.

Actions to Take:

???????Make a list of your 100 best personal qualities: choose one word to best describe you.

???????Track your positive and negative self-talk.

???????Note different ways you add value to other people.

Now Let’s Discuss More About Knowledge

In simple terms knowledge refers to what we know. It has to do with what the brain has mastered and stored.

Oxford dictionary defines knowledge as facts, information, and skills acquired through experience or education; the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject.

Cambridge dictionary defines knowledge as awareness, understanding, or information that has been obtained by experience or study, and that is either in a person's mind or possessed by people generally.

Merriam-webster dictionary on its part defines knowledge as the fact or condition of being aware of something.

David Bailey once said: “the best advice I ever got was that knowledge is power and to keep reading.”

Suffice it to say that knowledge refers to factual information about how to perform or carry out different activities in a manner that is able to achieve desired results. This means that the proof that the right kind of knowledge has been applied lies in the attainment of the desired result.

We speak of knowledge and skill as meaning competence. Competence being the ability to apply knowledge and skill, and with the right attitude, to get a desired result.

Knowledge is the attribute that enables a person turn the opportunities around him or her into success. The question now is: do you possess the requisite knowledge to empower yourself? Have you even determined the height to which you wish to climb and what is required to get there?

Pericles, a Greek Politician and military general said: “Having knowledge but lacking the power to express it clearly is no better than never having any ideas at all.”

Anton Chekhov, a Russian Playwright said: “Knowledge is of no value unless you put it into practice”

Ways to develop Knowledge

According to Horace Mann, an American Educator: “Every addition to true knowledge is an addition to human power”

The following are tips on how to develop more knowledge on a continual basis:

1.???????????Be curious – Like being inquisitive, eager and enthusiastic

2.???????????Cultivate the habit of reading or listening to great ideas and great talks. Listening to others is the easiest way to gain knowledge about something. All you require is undivided attention.

3.???????????Research – Like exploring, examining and scrutinizing

4.???????????Be open

5.???????????Be an observant person

6.???????????Seek to attend Training and Workshops

7.???????????Learn from failures: Just like victories, failure should also be celebrated. There should be learning points established.

8.???????????Learn about people’s successes – Listen to success stories

9.???????????Observing: A great deal of learning happens by observing others. Albert Bandura's social learning theory is based on this exact principle of observation and modification of behaviour patterns. The skill of chopping can be learned by observing a chef at work. Or, maybe, observe a painter to perceive the delicacy of each paint stroke.

In everyday life, tremendous knowledge is gained by watching people on YouTube or social media. Simply, watch others, and take physical or mental notes of their methods and techniques.

10.????????Reasoning: We have a duty to improve how we understand issues and how we reason to be able to learn appropriately.

11.????????Belong to Associations where you gain knowledge

12.????????Be hungry for knowledge

13.????????Self-Analysis & Discipline: There is a lot to be learned from the self. Take a proper peek into your abilities and genius and become knowledgeable about your skill sets. This review habit will highlight the areas that need improvement and those that you can reinforce.

Deep within you, there lies a reservoir of knowledge, waiting to be intercepted; recognize it and tap into it. Self-analysis will scan all the wisdom that lies in the unconscious mind and look for productive and unyielding habits to modify. A habitual routine sweep or introspection is a means to bring discipline to gain knowledge every day.

14.????????Find a Mentor (a teacher you admire): Being self-taught is excellent, but it is always better to have a mentor who can guide you.

Find a teacher who is knowledgeable and has good teaching skills. A professional who inspires you to learn and is genuinely interested in your growth. It is not easy, but the effort is worth every second of your "student life". It would be even better if you could share common interests and a love for learning.

Remember, your upskilling depends on your efforts and your teacher's guidance. They can reduce your blunders to silly mistakes and enhance your genius to your achievements.

As Albert Einstein put it, “Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school.”

Dimensions of Personal Empowerment

There are a number of possible areas that you may want to look at to help you develop more personal empowerment.

·??????Self-awareness involves understanding yourself and how you are likely to respond to situations.

This enables you to build on positive qualities and be aware of negative traits which may reduce your effectiveness.?Self-aware people make conscious decisions to enhance their lives whenever possible, learning from past experiences. In particular, you may need to improve your awareness of your strengths, weaknesses and limits.

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Empowered people know their strengths and weaknesses and are confident in communicating them to ensure that they get the opportunities they want. They also, however, know their limits and have no problems asking for help or guidance.

·??????Values are opinions or beliefs that are important to us but of which we are not always aware.

They can be any kind of belief or perceived obligation. The reasons for personal preferences and beliefs may not always be obvious or known, although they often go back to childhood. Self-awareness requires an understanding of your values, and then some critical examination of them to make sure that they are fully valid. It is also important to accept that everyone’s values are different.

·??????An individual’s skills are the main resources that enable them to achieve their goals.

Skills can be gained through experience, practice, education and training. It is only by developing skills that individual values could be translated into action.

·??????Knowledge or information is necessary to develop self-awareness and skills.

Knowing where to find appropriate information is in itself an essential skill. Without information, your choices will be more limited. The internet has provided an easy way for everybody to access huge amount of information very quickly and easily. However, not all information is available on the internet and not all information on the internet is reliable.

·??????Setting goals is a means by which an individual can take charge of their life.

The process of setting a goal involves thinking about your values and the direction that you would like your life to follow. Setting personal goals gives us a sense of direction in life, which is essential to personal empowerment.

·??????Confidence is one of the greatest motivators or most powerful limitations to anyone trying to change his behaviour and become more empowered.

Most persons only undertake tasks that they feel capable of doing and it takes great effort to overcome a lack of confidence in your own abilities.?Improving your confidence and building your self-esteem can therefore be important ways to improve your personal empowerment.

Calvin Coolidge, the 30th President of the United States once said: “Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan ‘Press On’ has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.”