Podbit · The Mel Robbins Podcast
Power isn't getting knocked down and getting back up. It's that plus humility (owning what you did wrong) plus authenticity (knowing when you're the beast on stage and when you need someone to take care of you). Power is a flow, not a trophy — and it works anywhere you place it.
Where this was said
At 1:09:57 · chapter starts 1:09:55
Mel asks what power means to Sarah, and the answer is nothing like conventional definitions of authority or dominance. [1] — Sarah Jakes Roberts "Power isn't getting knocked down and getting back up. It's that plus humility (owning what you did wrong) plus authenticity (knowing when y…" 1:09:57 Power, Sarah explains, is a cocktail — authenticity (knowing when you're the beast on stage and when you need to be nurtured), resiliency (getting back up), and humility (owning your mistakes and their impact on others). The mistake most people make is equating power only with resiliency, with getting knocked down and standing up again. But without humility, resiliency becomes arrogance. Without authenticity, it becomes performance. The three must flow together. And the key word is flow — power is not a trophy you earn and keep on a shelf. It moves. Which means the question you must always ask yourself is not 'am I powerful?' but 'what does power look like for me right now?'
Sarah defines power not as authority or dominance but as the combined flow of 100% authenticity, 100% resiliency, and 100% humility — a state of being, not a destination.
Sarah Jakes Roberts and her husband run a blended family of six children, a reality she uses as a practical example of needing both nurturing others and being nurtured yourself as part of authentic power.
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Bobby watching a father hold his baby triggered an existential moment: he and Andrew might be missing fatherhood. They priced out adoption ($40K–$70K private, $0–$2K foster care) and briefly considered adopting a child to timeshare like a condo.
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