The Quiet Power of “I Can”
By Sara Somasca | BASE YOGA
How small, meaningful steps help us feel capable again
Sometimes an important change begins with a quiet thought: “Maybe I can do something about this.”
A person may still feel uncertain. The problem may still be difficult. Yet a little possibility has entered a place that previously felt closed.
This is why empowerment matters so much to me. In my work, I want people to experience themselves as participants in their own lives: people whose preferences matter, whose strengths deserve recognition, and whose actions can make a difference. That feeling does not have to be complete before change begins. Sometimes it grows through the first step.
When our sense of capability is undermined
For some of us, believing in ourselves has become complicated. Family expectations, repeated criticism, or relationships in which our choices were questioned can leave us hesitant to trust our own judgment.
Over time, “I might find this difficult” can become “I’m not capable.” “Someone disagrees with me” can become “I must be wrong.”
These beliefs can feel like facts because they are familiar. Part of empowerment is making room to question them, gently enough that another possibility can emerge.
That also means taking people’s circumstances seriously. Financial pressure, discrimination, illness, and limited support are real obstacles. Helping someone recognize their agency includes identifying the practical help and opportunities they need.
What feeling capable makes possible
Psychologist Albert Bandura used the term self-efficacy to describe our belief in our ability to carry out a particular action. His work connected these beliefs with whether we begin, how much effort we invest, and how we respond to difficulty. Experiences of successfully doing something are one important source of that belief. [1]
Empowerment is broader than self-efficacy: it also concerns voice, choice, and access to resources. But the experience of “I can do this” is an important part of it.
Self-determination theory offers another useful perspective. Richard Ryan and Edward Deci describe competence, autonomy, and relatedness as psychological needs that support motivation. In everyday language, these involve feeling capable, having a meaningful say in what we do, and experiencing connection with others. [2]
For me, this is a reminder to ask whose goal we are working toward. A step can look successful from the outside and still feel disconnected from the person taking it.
Meeting the feeling of “not enough”
Before inviting someone toward change, I believe we need to make space for what makes change difficult.
When “I’m not good enough” appears, we can approach it with curiosity. Where might I have learned this? In which situations does it become strongest? What do I need when it appears? Are there experiences that suggest a different possibility?
There is no need to force a positive answer. “I am completely confident” may feel far away. “I am allowed to learn” may be more believable.
Making space for a feeling also means respecting our limits. We can pause, look around, move, or ask for support when reflection becomes too much. Understanding every root of a belief is not a prerequisite for taking a helpful step today.
What working with young people taught me
During my years as a social worker, I worked with teenagers and young adults. That experience taught me how much the first step toward change matters.
I wanted that step to be small enough to reach and meaningful enough for the young person to recognize it as their own. When someone is already discouraged, an enormous goal can feel like another opportunity to disappoint themselves.
Learning to meet frustration was part of the work too: trying, encountering difficulty, receiving support, and finding a way to continue or adjust. I wanted young people to have opportunities to experience their own effectiveness while they were learning.
I believe adults need this as well. We may have more life experience and still need a manageable starting point, especially when a situation touches old doubts about our worth or ability.
A small action might be asking for time before answering a request, writing one sentence about what we want, or taking the first practical step toward a decision we have postponed.
Afterward, we can notice what happened. What did I choose? What helped me? What did I learn? What might I adjust?
The outcome may be imperfect, and our worth is never conditional on getting it right. There can still be something useful to recognize in the attempt.
Where dopamine fits
There is a biological dimension to learning from experience. Dopamine acts as a neurotransmitter in the brain and is involved in reward learning and motivation. Research shows that many dopamine neurons respond to differences between expected and actual rewards, helping the brain update what it has learned. [3]
This research does not establish that feeling empowered produces a particular dopamine surge, or that every small success creates the same chemical response. The more useful foundation for this discussion is the psychological research on capability, choice, and motivation.
Making room for a person’s own power
These ideas shape how I think about coaching and yoga.
A conversation can offer room for someone to name what matters to them. A movement practice can offer opportunities to choose a variation, ask for support, or rest. A quiet moment may help someone notice a preference that has been difficult to hear. For someone else, gentle movement or conversation may be a more accessible starting point than stillness.
As coaches, yoga teachers, and other helping professionals, each within our own role, we can offer support that leaves room for the person’s judgment. We can recognize strengths, help make a goal manageable, and allow decisions to remain theirs.
The kind of empowerment I want to support can be quiet. It may sound like: “I can ask.” “I can try.” “I can change my mind.” “I can take one step and learn from it.”
What is one small, meaningful choice you could make for yourself today?
Sara Somasca | BASE YOGA
Body-Mind Coach & Yoga Teacher
References
[1] Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84(2), 191–215. Read reference. Author abstract through Stanford.
[2] Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55(1), 68–78. Read reference.
[3] Schultz, W. (2016). Dopamine reward prediction error coding. Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, 18(1), 23–32. Read reference.