I-Am List: A Tool of Self-Empowerment

A few months and a couple of conferences ago, I attended a workshop where the facilitator had us freewrite a list of things describing who we were. The entire list had to begin with “I am…” If I’m not mistaken, we had about five minutes–which can seem like forever at first–to create the list.

Mine started off rather generic, and I’m sure I wasn’t the only one. I said stuff like I am beautiful, smart, funny, etc. However, after running out of stuff to say, I had to dig deeper. There, I found the jewels.

My I-Am list is something that I continuously go back to. I’ve made it a habit of creating a new one whenever I buy a new journal. It only makes sense, considering that we’re ever evolving. For instance, this year I learned that I’m a feminist.

And when I’m feeling blah, then rereading some of my lists is an excellent source of umpf. That’s because if you feel like wading deep in discovery, empowerment, exploration, expression, enrichment, esteem, acceptance, and all of the many other phenomenal faces of self-love, then the I-Am list is the perfect place to start.

It’s critical though that you be honest and open. This is your space to claim all of your shit. I can be jealous, petty, and ridiculous at times. But I’m also loving, caring, nurturing, creative, and smart. So, all of these are elements of my I-Am list.

What’s on yours?