When we speak of personal power, we are speaking of the ability to operate on the plane of causality, which requires understanding. Some people realize that they are defeated and know that they are just an effect at the whim of others more powerful than they. Or they like to pretend they are cause through their distractions, addictions, politics, family life, hobbies, competitive sports, job, financial situation, video games, etc. The powerless will often join groups of this “ism” to compete against that “ism”, in order to feel more powerful by being a part of a collective group – but this is just another counterfeit of power.
Being empowered does not mean being powerful (cause) over others, nor does it mean that we must submit to others as an effect of their external cause, as this is externalized power and a hallmark of the predator/prey game. Internalized power, the state of being an empowered individual, is where we take full responsibility for our life and act as cause to internally create our 
reality, and externally co-create our reality with other like minded creators. This requires us to hone and refine our understanding, through asking ourselves the question “why” again and again, whenever we feel triggered, or when other feedback also presents itself to us.
Externalized power is being cause over others, powerlessness is when others are cause over us, but internalized empowerment is being cause from within, free from externalized power dramas.
~Nathan & Aline
“Beneath our poised appearance, the truth is we are completely out of control. Causality. There is no escaping it. We are forever slaves to it. Our only hope, our only peace is to understand it, to understand the why. Why is what separates us from them, you from me. Why is the only real source of power, without it you are powerless. And this is how you come to me: without why, without power, another link in the chain.” ~The Merovingian, The Matrix Reloaded
“Every Cause has its Effect; every Effect has its Cause; everything happens according to Law; Chance is but a name for Law not recognized; there are many planes of causation, but nothing escapes the Law.”–The Kybalion, The Sixth Hermetic Principle of Cause and Effect
For more on this subject, see the article “What Does it Mean to Be Empowered?“.
