Your 5 Core Energies Are the Key to Being the Change You Want to See in the World. Here’s How to Tap Into Them

At the very center of the sun is what scientists call its core. The core represents only 1 percent of the sun’s volume. Remarkably so, this 1 percent is responsible for 99 percent of the energy the sun generates.

What if this were true of you as well? What if, at the very center of your being, lay your Inner Core, and this 1 percent of you was responsible for 99 percent of your potential, or perhaps even more?

Many of us struggle to balance the drumroll of the world with the beat of our own heart. We live with family members we feel emotionally distanced from; we feel disengaged from our job but fearful about trying out a new path; we feel the pressure to conform to others’ expectations even though they do not make sense to us or seem downright wrong. The waters of life are often muddy, and our spirit strains to be in full bloom.

Some of us deal with these dilemmas by splitting life into two parallel tracks, seeking to live authentically in our personal sphere while chasing earthly glory on the outside. When we do this, we never fully occupy either space.

Others divide life into two phases. Phase one is the here-and-now pursuit of outer accomplishment in which we strive to earn a lot of money, achieve success at work, outshine our peers, find security and validation. Phase two is the “sometime-in-the-future” pursuit of inner success—becoming the person we want to be. I have witnessed this approach in some of my MBA students. In their quest for relevance and rewards, they see no option but to go after the most coveted and highly rewarded careers, even when they care little for the organization they will work for, the customer they will serve, or the product they will be making or marketing. They promise themselves that once their outer hungers have been fed, they will feed their inner yearnings and become their true selves.

But too often the compromises struck in phase one become a way of life, and the years speed by without a person ever finding time to explore and express those deeper yearnings. Before they know it, the end is in sight, and they realize that they pawned their soul and never went back to reclaim it.

Some of you may be thinking, “That’s not me! I am always true to myself. I do and say what I wish. I don’t suppress my feelings. I won’t sacrifice my authenticity at the altar of outer success.” I applaud you if that’s who you are. But the pursuit of inner success might come at its own cost: the price of diminished earthly rewards. In being unapologetically true to our self, we may end up hurting, disappointing, or antagonizing others, leading to strained relationships and lost opportunities. Doors may shut because people in our personal and professional circles feel that we are not attuned to their needs, not flexible or collaborative in our approach. And even if we attain power and influence, we may be feared, perhaps respected, but not admired or loved.

It may seem that inner and outer success are doomed to be in conflict, that we must choose between them. The more we focus on getting other people’s approval and pursuing success based on their rules, the less we feel true to ourselves; the more we pursue our own agenda and freely express ourselves, the less open we are to striking compromises to gain other people’s support, and the less worldly success we enjoy.

Investor Warren Buffett has put it this way: “The big question about how people behave is whether they’ve got an Inner Scorecard or an Outer Scorecard.” Or, as he puts it, what if you had to choose between being the best investor in the world, even though the world thinks you are the worst, or being the worst investor in the world, even though the world thinks you are the best? Which would it be for you—inner or outer?

But inner and outer success do not have to compete with each other. The breakthrough comes when we recognize that both inner and outer success are meant to arise from the same place – our Inner Core. Here’s what I mean.

When you say, “I want to be true to myself,” which “self” are you referring to? For I will confess that I have many selves. A part of me wants to please others; another part wants to please myself. I call these my please-others self and my please-me self. Then there is my indulgent self, my disciplined self, my habitual self, my aspirational self. And I’ve only just begun. So, I invite you to pause for a minute and take an honest look inside yourself. Do you not at times feel like there’s a war going on within, that you are listening to a cacophony of conflicting entreaties from your many selves? How can you be true to your “self” when you have multiple parts within you jostling for influence?

The path to inner success lies in discovering your true self and manifesting it in your every thought, feeling, word, and action. This requires you to become an inner warrior, to vanquish the many false selves that are holding your true self hostage. When you allow one of your false selves to seduce you, it may not bother you in the moment—in fact, it might actually feel good to gratify an impulsive desire, feeling, or thought—but one day you will wake up to regret that you did not live a life true to the truest part of you.

What is your true self? I offer that it is your Inner Core—the space of highest potential within you, your best self. When you operate from your Core, you are free from ego, attachments, blinding beliefs, limiting habits, and insecurities. You are at peace with yourself. It reflects the purest part of who you are and your noblest intentions.

If you’re like most of us, you sometimes operate from your Core, sometimes drift away from it, and sometimes (sigh) veer far, far away. And yet that part of who you are is always there for you to come back to and connect more deeply with.

My research has revealed that all of us possess, in that space of highest potential within, five Core Energies. We experience a powerful shift when we start to activate and express these energies in everything we do.

Your five Core Energies are:

1. Purpose: Pursue a purpose-driven path in life, paved with values, with goals as your milestones.

2. Wisdom: Uncover and embrace the truth in all matters, and direct your emotions and thoughts in the service of your Purpose.

3. Growth: Each day, grow your inward connection with your Core and your outward expression of it in all you do.

4. Love: Take joy in others’ joy and find success in their success.

5. Self-Realization: Be centered in your tranquil and joyful spirit within.

The more you manifest these energies in your life, the more inner success comes to you, because you feel increasingly more authentic in everything you do. But not just that. By being anchored in your Core, you also create the conditions for outer success.

Your Inner Core brings the clarity of mind you need to analyze issues objectively and make enlightened choices. It frees you from habitual modes of thought and from confining personality traits and attachments, so your choices can be guided not by ego or insecurity but by your commitment to your purpose and values. It creates a space between the triggers you experience—the disappointing email, the challenging question from a colleague at a meeting—and your response to those triggers, empowering you to act with intention rather than instinct. It grounds you on the inside and then empowers you to act in the most impactful way on the outside. You bring out your best when your behavior is the outer expression of your Core Energies: Purpose, Wisdom, Growth, Love, and Self-Realization. And when you bring out your best, then you get more support. And the more you are at your best, the more opportunities, respect, engagement, support, followership, and receptivity you will gain from people in your personal and professional life. And that will bring you outer success.

So, the same one key unlocks both inner and outer success, and this key lies within—in operating from your Inner Core and manifesting your 5 Core Energies. By mastering your inner game, you become free to play your best outer game.

Excerpted from Inner Mastery, Outer Impact: How Your Five Core Energies Hold the Key to Success by Hitendra Wadhwa. Copyright 2022. Available from Hachette Go, an imprint of Hachette Book Group, Inc.