The Savvy Steward’s Guide to Cultivate 'Power With'

In the world of social impact, we like to believe that good intentions shield us against inequity. They don't. When we fail to map the power dynamics in the room, the most marginalized voices disappear.

1. Visible power: The formal rules, bylaws, and hierarchies that dictate by whom, where, when, and how decisions are made.
   

2. Hidden power: This operates through unspoken norms and personal agendas that obscure the location of power and decision-making process from the public.
   

3. Invisible power: This operates through the stories that people in power tell until they become societal norms, which we then adopt as our own personal beliefs.

To become a savvy steward, you must move beyond these three expressions of ‘power over’ and begin cultivating ‘power with’ – the shared strength that emerges when power is distributed rather than hoarded.

Decoding the Architecture: Power Over

'Power over' is built on a foundation of either/or: Either I have the power, or you do. This looks like:

• Gatekeeping: Information is shared only with a select few.
  

• Invited Spaces: Community members or staff are invited to speak, but the boundaries of the conversation are strictly pre-defined by those at the top.
  

• Command and Control: Decisions are made based on formal titles (authority) rather than collective expertise (influence).
  

When we rely on power over, team members become hesitant to share creative solutions because the environment doesn't feel safe for dissent.

Cultivating Power With

The transition to 'power with' requires a deliberate redistribution of influence. This marks the transition from a hierarchical model to a horizontal one with distributed influence and collective authority. It moves from a solitary oak tree to a mycelium network — where resources and information flow through decentralized channels to support the entire ecosystem.

'Power with' is built on:

• Collective Agency: Shared capacity of individuals to unite, reclaim their narrative, and reshape systems. This is rooted in the belief that our strength comes from our ability to act together.
  

• Radical Inclusivity: An approach that goes beyond accepting differences to actively dismantle systemic barriers and ensure that all individuals, especially those from marginalized communities, have a voice and the tools to thrive. It involves ongoing efforts to create equitable environments where everyone can participate fully and feel valued.
  

• Relational Trust: The understanding that people and systems are dependable, honest, and have our well-being in mind. This is developed through consistent, transparent interaction.
  

Redesigning Your Collaborative's Power Dynamics

Ready to move from theory to action? Use these three strategies from Rooted Together to audit your current power structure:

1. Distinguish Authority vs. Influence

In your next meeting, notice who speaks most. Is it the person with the highest title (authority), or the person with the deepest lived experience and community connection (influence)?

• Authority stems from a formal title or position, such as a CEO or government official. Here, power resides in the office or position rather than the individual. 
  

• Influence grows through trust, relationships, access to resources, expertise, achievements, education, and the ability to inspire. Individuals earn influence; they do not inherit it with a title.
  

Redesign: Sustainable, shared community power grows from influence that prioritizes decolonization (stripping away 'command and control' mindsets), deep understanding, authentic connection, and collective well-being. Build a 'created space' where the agenda centers collaborative partners with the lived experience to navigate the nuanced needs and the realities of the community you serve, not just those closest to privilege and authority.

2. Identify Your Social Location

Your social location marks the intersection of your identities — e.g., race, gender, class, and professional background — and shifts depending on the space you occupy.

Default metric: Define the ‘default’ leader in your community. Consider their education level, physical ability, or cultural references. How closely do you align with this default? The closer you sit to this standard, the more hidden power you carry – often without realizing it.

Redesign: Ask: Whose voice is missing from this decision, and how does my social location make it easier or harder for me to hear them?

A visual representation of the Power Wheel, illustrating how various social identities and characteristics affect individuals' proximity to power, with sections highlighting margins of privilege and marginalization across different dimensions such as race, gender, socioeconomic status, and education.

3. Shift from Transactional to Transformational Influence

Two distinct types of influence move collaborations from being ‘partners on paper’ to becoming social change mechanics:

• Transactional influence (power over): Moves current gameboard pieces to gain a seat at the table, win a vote, or secure a grant. While necessary, transactional influence leaves underlying power dynamics untouched.
  

• Transformational influence (power with): Changes the gameboard itself. It analyzes who the current power structure serves and intervenes to weave a new tapestry of shared authority.

Redesign: Use a Power Intervention Strategy to counter 'power over' dynamics in group settings:

• Equity Pause: Introduce a rule allowing any member to call for a 60-second meeting pause when they feel a dominating power imbalance. This forces a reset before any decision is made.
  

• First Voice: Establish a rule where the first three responses to any strategic question must come from those most impacted by the issue, not those with the highest institutional title.
  

• Rotating Facilitation: Rotate facilitation every meeting. Pair each facilitator with a shadow who watches for unseen dynamics and reports on them at the end of the meeting.

From Observation to Impact

To shift the landscape, you must create your own collective agency power loop: Notice, Analyze, Integrate, and Activate. By choosing 'power with, you gain decentralized resilience. This work enables you to build a 'person-proof' organization — one that doesn't collapse when a single leader leaves, because its roots are deep, interconnected, and shared by all.

Access a guide to cultivate 'power with' your community:

• Explore the Shared Power Library: Learn more from Talem's full suite of open-access resources to operationalize equity-based interventions. Explore the Library.

  
  

• Go Deeper with Rooted Together: Reserve your copy of Rooted Together: Democratizing Power for the Collective Good. By joining the reservation list, you unlock exclusive access to the Noticing the Threads diagnostic — a specialized toolkit for identifying hidden power accumulation in real-time. Reserve your copy and unlock the diagnostic.