Most people believe that the desire for power is one of mankind's biggest drives. We assume that everyone wants it, longs for it, needs it in the marrow of their bones. But the truth is that we are already supremely powerful beings, and we spend most of our lives looking for ways to give that power away.

We give our power away any time that we believe that something else has power over us. The thing we empower may be our boss or the company we work for, our mortgage and other financial commitments, the government, our family, money, "the economy," or our religious leaders. "Wait a minute," you'll say. "Some of those things really do have power over me. If I don't do what my boss says, I'll get fired."

Here's the thing:  when we give our power away, we stop assuming responsibility for ourselves and our lives. Unquestionably, we all have to get along with our bosses. We should meet our financial commitments. We should respect the rights and opinions of others. But this is not the same thing as abdicating our power to them.

If you can't stand your job but feel like you can't quit, you are giving your power away. If you feel like your boss is the one who is making your life miserable, you are giving your power away. In these instances, you are abdicating all responsibility for your own choices and condition. There is always another choice you can make—you just may not like having to make it.

When we give our power to other things, we are enabling our own passivity. Life just "happens" to us. It wasn't my fault; it's out of my hands. And then we become victims. Poor, poor me. I'm not happy, but I guess I never will be. I can't change jobs because of the mortgage. I can't be a musician because I have a family to support. I can't take a vacation because I don't have enough money. I can't take any time for myself because I have so much that "I have to do." I can't. And thus we limit our world by limiting our power.

We seek to create authority figures wherever possible to ensure that we have somewhere to place our power. For example, we may give our government the power to tell us whether we're married or not, or allow religious leaders to define our own experience of God for us. We may surrender our power to doctors, instead of participating in our own healing process. Then we make laws and rules, and sometimes they are arbitrary and outdated. Sometimes they are unjust. But once made, they take on a life of their own—a power of their own. Discrimination and oppression have been enshrined in our law books, and yet it takes someone with the courage to break those rules to lead to their end. Slavery, segregation and miscegenation laws, and laws against "homosexual acts" all fall into this category.

Even nominally "powerful" people give their power away. Some very wealthy people give their power to money. It owns them; they are slaves to it. And sometimes, they manifest what they fear the most:  losing the money that signifies power and status. When we empower money, everything becomes about the money, and not about ourselves. Money is not our source of abundance. Our source is divine, and abundance can certainly manifest in the form of money, but money is not our power.

Our government leaders struggle with their power, too. Many a bright-eyed young politician with dreams of changing the world has been led astray by giving away their power. We give power to world events, or to resources or trade or money, and we think of these things as unchanging and unchangeable, something that it is useless to struggle against. And we thereby cede our power to it. When we think thoughts such as, "There will always be strife in the Middle East," or "We can't change the way that we create jobs," we are limiting ourselves and giving our power away. We become victims of circumstance, and we feel sorry for our lot. And nothing changes.

So, why do we do it? Why do we give our power away? The answer is pretty simple:  our power scares the heck out of us.

It is so much easier to blame external circumstances, other people, or the world or society at large for our problems. When we do that, we are not obligated to examine ourselves, heal ourselves, or change ourselves. This is truly the easy path. But look where it gets us. Are victims ever happy? Is society ever improved? Are problems ever solved with this attitude? No.

We stand at a crossroads on this planet. We have demonstrated that we have the power to blow up everything we see, to kill each other with incredible efficiency, and to impact the very climate of Earth itself. All this while playing the blame game, giving power to beliefs such as, "There will always be wars." Whatever we focus our thoughts on, we empower. We have been doing this all along—but unconsciously, while denying our power.

It's time to take back our power. It's time to find our own truths, and to live by them. We must work together in this process, of course. We can be respectful, we can cooperate, we can compromise where needed, but we must know that we as individuals hold the keys to our own happiness. If you are not happy, only you can change that. Yes, you will need buy-in from others. You may need a plan. Change need not occur overnight. It seldom does, nor is it always desirable. But own your happiness. Own your feelings. Own your power.

Stan Lee said it best in the Spiderman comics: "With great power comes great responsibility." We are all superheroes. We are powerful beyond measure. We are part of the divine consciousness—not separate from it. We have the same divine power to create, and with that comes an awesome responsibility. Each person on this planet has the power to shape our future. Collectively, we are an awesome presence. You can help simply by taking your power and making the seemingly small changes that will bring happiness to your corner of the world. The impact of that is immeasurable.

Related articles:

• What it means to speak your truth
• We are One: The world is a reflection of you
• You are a guardian angel
• We have two choices: Love and fear
• Finding peace in an uncertain world