Finding Your Stage: Creating Your Own Powerful State

The Best Place on Earth: Finding Your Stage

I love my job. I love being on stage, sharing insights and research in ways that can leave an impact. The other day, a friend and I were talking about public speaking, and he said something that I hear often: “I could never do that. It would terrify me.” To me, it’s the exact opposite. It’s the best place on earth, because for that one hour or 90 minutes, I have only one problem: making sure the audience’s time is valuable. It’s heaven on earth.

This got me thinking—what if we could all find that “stage” in our lives? I’m not suggesting everyone should become a public speaker, but I am encouraging you to find what that “stage” is for you.

Finding Your Powerful State

Where do you feel most powerful? Where do you feel most elevated? That’s the place you need to be. For some, it might be a physical place; for others, it could be an environment, a group of people, or a set of routines. Personally, I arrive early to every venue, scope out the stage, and when I finally step on that platform and grab the microphone, something just clicks inside me—it’s go time.

To find your stage, start with a routine. It doesn’t have to be something huge; it just needs to be a way to signal to yourself that it’s “go time.” A friend of mine, for example, has a simple ritual: she lights a candle, turns on a small waterfall machine, and lets the ambiance carry her into work mode. Routines don’t just prepare you for tasks; they empower you to give your best effort.

Create a Routine to Put Yourself in a Powerful State

Think back to the last time you felt truly locked in, fully in the zone. What did you do beforehand? Often, it’s a series of little actions that put you in a powerful state without even realizing it. If you try to force focus without a preparatory routine, you’re just putting unnecessary pressure on yourself. For me, I’ve always been the kind of person who arrives early. It’s part of my routine because being early gives me peace, and I don’t operate well when I feel rushed.

Take some time to identify the routines that help you feel grounded, focused, and powerful. It could be how you set up your office, a playlist you listen to, or a morning ritual that primes you for success. The key is to understand what actions set you up to feel powerful.

Your Mind Can Be Your Sanctuary

It’s not always possible to find a physical place that makes you feel powerful. Sometimes, life forces us into less-than-ideal situations, like toxic workplaces or challenging environments. In these cases, your sanctuary has to come from within.

Even if your surroundings aren’t ideal, your mindset can put you in a position of power. Sometimes, all it takes is remembering who you are and what you’ve overcome to rekindle that inner strength. Remember that kid inside you who believed anything was possible? At some point, many of us stop dreaming, and in losing that dream, we lose our childlike curiosity to learn and grow. Reconnect with that part of yourself. Remind yourself of what you’re capable of.

Change Your Perspective

If your current environment is limiting your perspective, find a new one. It doesn’t have to be something drastic like moving to another country—though that worked wonders for me when I visited Peru. Seeing the towering mountains and experiencing the culture completely changed my perception of what “big” and “possible” meant.

Sometimes, a small change can be equally effective. Try working from a new location, meeting new people, or simply taking a different route on your morning run. Changing your environment can open your eyes to new possibilities and help you discover something inside yourself that you didn’t even know was there.

Be Your Own Superhero

Ultimately, being your own sanctuary means understanding and embracing who you are. When you know who you are, you can connect with what you want to do, and you can put yourself in a powerful state.

This is not about being perfect or having all the answers. It’s about realizing that you have what it takes to become your own superhero in your career and in your life. Just like that kid who believed they could be anything, remember that you still have the potential to be the hero of your own story. It’s all about putting yourself in the right state to make it happen.