How to Balance Your Masculine and Feminine Energy
If you’re feeling undervalued and stressed or unsupported and scattered then your masculine and feminine energies may be off-balanced. Is there a way to feel balanced? In this post, you’ll learn the difference between both energies and how you can find harmony again.
“Individually and collectively, we are shifting from a position of fear into surrender and trust of the intuitive. The power of the feminine energy is on the rise in our world.”
Today I want to talk about the difference between feminine and masculine energy and how it affects your creative life. AKA: Yin and Yang. It's a captivating topic that I learned about from a life-changing book called Women, Writing, and Soul-Making* by Peggy Tabor Millin.
These energies are always pulsing within you. But it's easy to forget to embrace and acknowledge both. When one energy becomes dominant that's when life feels off-balance. Symptoms might include burnout. Creative longing and anger.
However, understanding these energies makes connecting to your inner wisdom easier. When your energies are in harmony you'll feel a greater sense of peace and compassion. You'll feel more energized and connect better with others.
We'll discuss in more detail how to find balance but first let's get this out of the way: No one will ever attain a perfect balance of the feminine and masculine. Don't allow that to be the goal here. Focus instead on using this knowledge to become more aware. To become a kinder, more loving version of yourself.
Keep reading to learn what each type of energy is, how it affects wellbeing, and how to incorporate this new awareness into your life. I’m hoping by the end of this post you'll be inspired to give more attention to the energy that's lacking in your life.
WHAT IS MASCULINE and FEMININE ENERGY?
Everyone is born with both of these universal energies. They don't have a gender inherently assigned to them but humankind associates Yin with the feminine. Yang with the masculine.
Masculine is often viewed as bad and feminine as good. Let’s throw that out the window. There is no good or bad here. Both energies make up the very essence of who you are for a reason.
The Chopra Center says that feminine energy "makes us softer, gentler, kinder, nurturing, compassionate, and loving.”
When you embrace the feminine you nurture qualities like intuition, creativity, compassion, understanding. There's a receptive and open feeling in this type of energy. It's fast and energized.
Hormone expert Alissa Vitti says when you value the qualities that feminine energy nurtures you're better able to:
Magnetically attract what you want
Hold space for projects to develop at their natural pace
Enjoy the process of creation independent of the end result
See the big picture
Work with others and create community
Relate to others by listening, sharing, and nurturing
When you embrace the masculine you nurture qualities like leadership, action, logic, adventure, loyalty, confidence, focus, and efficiency.
According to Vitti, when you value the qualities of the masculine energy within yourself and others, you:
Tenaciously pursue what you want
Decide when/where/how a project grows
Focus on the end result of a project
Focus on one thing at a time
Rely on yourself and your individual achievements
Relate through camaraderie, entertainment, and problem-solving
In a broader sense, giving is an action of our divine masculine, and receiving is an action of our divine feminine, and a balance of both energies is when we feel harmonious within.
What happens to our wellbeing when our actions are off-balance?
Imbalanced Energy’s Effect on Wellbeing
The truth is masculine energy without feminine energy isn't complete. And vice versa. When masculine energy is too dominant you may not feel valued, nurtured, or appreciated. You'll feel tired, stressed, overworked and unloved. It doesn't help when society encourages this by rewarding a masculine, ego-driven way of being.
When I worked in the music industry my boss at the time got angry with me for being "too nice". He said I had to learn to be a jerk to get ahead. I remember crying when I got home because I refused to believe that was the only way.
Now, you'll thankfully see people like Sara Blakely, the founder of Spanx and self-made billionaire, saying she believes in succeeding through kindness. But the pressure to do the opposite is very real.
When feminine energy is too dominant you feel unsupported, unfocused, scattered and unstable. Without purpose or direction and therefore feel no sense of success. Even a little ungrounded.
In an article on Elephant Journal writer Shayna Hiller says, "I like to visualize the feminine part of ourselves as a watery liquid—it flows, and it must be contained otherwise it is dispersed. Dispersed feminine energy may feel like being out of control, ungrounded, irritable, and lonely".
You can see the interplay that happens between the two. The masculine pursues, plans, and focused. The feminine enjoys creating, dreaming, and unfolding. They need one another.
Alright, now that you know how these two energies affect your wellbeing let's get to the good stuff. How to have harmony with both energies.
How to Have Harmony
Start acknowledging the vast energy system around you and within you. The lists below share ways to step more into your feminine and masculine powers. I find when you connect to your intuition you'll also feel inspired about how to step into your masculine. So the latter will be a shorter list.
For feminine energy:Yoga. One of the primary goals of yoga is to bridge the gap between the masculine and feminine. The very act of focusing on one breath at a time is masculine in nature. While holding space for your practice to develop is feminine.
Meditation
Laughter
Let yourself be in a relationship. This is a great way to practice surrender and openness. Many people shut out an opportunity for relationship thinking the dominant masculine more important.
Always have something to be excited about. Connect to your future. This is from Brendon Burchard who says to build in something you can be excited about every week. Discuss it. Talk about it. This allows you to feel the feminine nature of big picture thinking.
Get into nature
Practice intuitive writing
For masculine energy:Design moments back into your day that fulfill you. Schedule an hour to read. Put a hard stop time for work. Plan a trip.
Pick a result or goal to work towards. Schedule time during your week to chip away at it. Allow yourself to feel the joy of completing a passion project.
Get together with friends and loved ones. Feel that sense of camaraderie and have fun!
How We Can Support One Another
Of course any sacred or divine concept is limited when you try to define it. I hope that by understanding these energies you can better point out and recognize throughout your day when you‘re going too far one way or the other. However you find yourself feeling don't get discouraged or judge yourself.
Consider your emotions like first responders. Your body senses something is off and calls on them to surface hoping they'll trigger the actions necessary to get better. Remember, you're already miles ahead of most people who don't take the time to think about this stuff.
It's a matter of asking yourself what you need each day and seeking to harmonize with what your soul needs.
One last thing to mention is to support those you love to embrace both energies within themselves. Allow them to feel safe to do so. Text or call a friend who's having a tough week at work and ask how they're doing. Reward shows of emotion or affection in your husband or wife. The world needs your open, loving spirit more than you realize.
Affirmation
I allow the sacred feminine and masculine to harmonize within.
Do This Today
Choose one feminine energy activity to try this week.
Writing Prompt
Ask yourself today where you're at in your wellbeing journey. Are you feeling under-appreciated and not nurtured enough? Do you feel scattered, unfocused, and directionless? Write down your response then see which energy is more dominant in your life.
Resources
Free Guide: How to Balance Your Masculine and Feminine Energy
Book: Women, Writing, and Soul-Making* by Peggy Tabor Millin
Article: What You Need To Know Right Now About Intuition
Article: How to Set Yourself Free Through Forgiveness
*This is an affiliate link. Purchasing through affiliate links helps fund The Good Space at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting us!
