His American mother and grandparents played a strong role in his life and views on the world. His wife and children play a strong role in his life but so does his political drive and ambition. Barack Obama is truly a symbol of empowerment for African Americans young and old alike.

His rise from a law career to a US senator was remarkable and his attitudes on American ideals and values that have been lost through history are evidence.  I will reflect back on this day a few years from now and realize this is where I started to plant seeds to help others build their eternal legacy.

em·pow’er·ment — n

At the core of the concept of empowerment is the idea of power. The possibility of empowerment depends on two things. First, empowerment requires that power can change. If power cannot change, if it is inherent in positions or people, then empowerment is not possible, nor is empowerment conceivable in any meaningful way. In other words, if power can change, then empowerment is possible. Second, the concept of empowerment depends upon the idea that power can expand. This second point reflects our common experiences of power rather than how we think about power.

The Process of Empowerment

Empowerment is the totality of the following or similar capabilities:

1. Having decision-making power of one’s own
2. Having access to information and resources for taking proper decision
3. Having a range of options from which you can make choices
4. Ability to exercise assertiveness in collective decision making
5. Having positive thinking on the ability to make change
6. Ability to learn skills for improving one’s personal or group power.
7. Ability to change others’ perceptions by democratic means.
8. Involving in the growth process and changes that is never ending
9. Increasing one’s positive self-image and overcoming stigma
10.Increasing one’s ability in discreet thinking to sort out right and wrong

Unleash Your Inner Barack Obama

Have you ever felt like you were taught to hide or attack your problems instead of looking to your highest self for direction? We spend too much time on the small details of daily life and not enough time looking at our future vision and inner viewpoint. As a human being, Obama also embodies much of what mere mortals like us aspire to. Watching his campaign, I marveled at his ability to raise the tone of the discourse, to encourage people to remember that we exist not for ourselves exclusively but also for one another, and that each of us can choose how we interact with the world.

My challenge to you is to harness your inner Barack Obama and assist others around you to build their eternal legacy. If you enjoyed what you’ve read  then I encourage you to return often to and share the information you read here with others.