Behind the Laptop //023: The Victim Shadow Archetype: Stepping Into the Warrior’s Energy and Owning Your Power
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If you’ve ever felt like no matter how hard you work, your dream successes are always slipping through your fingers, you’re not the only one.
Money leaves as quickly as it comes. You land a new client, but then a big bill arrives. You get into a rhythm with content, then hit burnout and disappear for weeks.
It’s exhausting.
And if this cycle feels familiar, it’s because you’re stuck in a loop with the Victim Shadow Archetype calling the shots. This shadow convinces you life is happening to you instead of through or with you; and that your success is so fragile, the moment you stop controlling everything, it will all fall apart.
In my Shadow Work Methodology, the Victim sits in Channel 3 of creation. Its light counterpart is the Warrior Archetype, the part of you that knows exactly how much energy you have, when to push, when to rest, and that nothing outside of you can “take away” your success.
When you alchemize your Victim Shadow into it’s light counterpart, the Warrior, you stop waiting for external conditions to feel “safe” before moving forward. You become the steady force that decides where your energy goes, and you trust yourself to handle anything that comes your way.
If you’re new to this series, start with these foundational articles for context:
Shadow Archetype at a Glance: The Victim
Channel: 3 of Creation
Core theme: Energy, motivation, momentum, movement, action, anxiety (in the body), collapse, external control, loss, impending doom, control
Shadow driver: Avoiding risk, over-controlling the process, exhausting yourself to “protect” success, unclear understanding of personal energy and required energy, fear that the external world is trying to harm or limit you, belief that an external force dictates your physical reality
Core wound & belief system:
“Life is hard, and I can’t control what happens.”
“If I stop pushing, it will all fall apart.”
“My success is fragile and can be taken from me at any moment.”
“I have to work ‘hard’ to have success.”
“If I don’t control every little details it will all fall apart.”
“I’m not in control of how I feel and what I do.”
Light Archetype at a Glance: The Warrior
Core theme: Energy mastery, grounded effort, self-trust, stability, safety, security, understanding of how much energy is required to complete any specific task
Light driver: Choosing where your energy goes, knowing exactly when to push and when to rest, building success on sustainable foundations, knowing you are the creator of your universe through not only your thoughts but also your direct actions
Core Truth & Embodied Power:
“I influence my reality, and my energy is my responsibility.”
“I can handle anything that comes my way.”
“I know when to rest, when to act, and I trust my timing.”
“Success requires effort, but not suffering.”
“What I want is easy for me to create.”
“I know what I do and how I behave shapes my reality.”
What It Looks Like When the Victim Shadow Is Unintegrated
Feelings
Constant anxiety about losing what you’ve built
Hypervigilance: always waiting for “the other shoe to drop”
Resentment toward work, clients, or opportunities that feel “too hard”
Low energy, never enough energy to get done what you want/need to
Poor sleep patterns
Fidgety, fast heart beat, shallow breaths
Thoughts
“Things are always harder for me.”
“Why is success so hard?”
“This is too hard, I can’t do it.”
“If I stop pushing or take a break, everything will collapse and I will lose all my momentum.”
“I can’t control what happens, it’s all up to the market/client/luck.”
Beliefs
Success is fragile and can be taken away at any time
Life requires constant sacrifice to “make it”
Ease is dangerous because it means you’re not doing enough
If I’m not struggling/suffering then I’m not trying hard enough.
I am an anxious person, I have anxiety.
Everything is so hard and takes so much of my energy.
I never have enough energy to do what needs to be done.
Behaviours
Overworking until you crash
Swinging between burnout and complete inaction
Avoiding breaks even when you need them
Creating rigid “must do” rules to keep bad things from happening
Packing far too much into your calendar or to-do list with no regard for how much energy it will take to complete
Negative Manifestations
Money disappearing as fast as it arrives
Chronic fatigue or stress-related health issues
Poor sleep patterns
Burnout before launches or projects are complete
Strained relationships due to overwork or withdrawal and snappy remarks
Have a hard time “getting started” on tasks and projects
How to Alchemize the Victim Shadow into the Warrior Archetype
Integration means no longer letting external chaos dictate your inner state or your pace. It’s not about grinding harder, that only feeds your Victim Shadow, it’s about mastering your energy so effort feels good and your results stabilize.
Below are three of my favourite practices to rewire the Victim shadow into the Warrior’s grounded, sustainable energy.
Exercise #1: The Energy Gauge Check-In
The Victim overestimates or ignores their energy levels. The Warrior measures them with precision and acts accordingly.
How to do it:
Step 1: Check in with yourself.
Throughout the day, when you wake up, finish a task, or decide what to do next; pause and ask: “How much energy is in my tank right now?”
Step 2: Give it a number.
Rate your energy from 0–100%. This isn’t about judgment (or pretending you have more energy to give than you actually do) it’s about gathering honest intel on where you’re at.
Step 3: Match your actions to your reserves.
Compare your number to the work on your plate. If you notice, “I don’t have the energy for this today,” you can always move it to tomorrow or delegate. Or, you can plan to complete a part of that project during this work period, schedule time for rest, and come back to it.
Why it works:
This practice reconnects you with your body so you can accurately gauge where you’re at, instead of running on autopilot or ignoring your limits. You learn to make decisions from a grounded place, respecting your capacity and directing your energy where it matters most. Over time, your nervous system learns it’s safe to rest and still succeed, breaking the cycle of overexertion and crash.
Tips:
Be honest about your number. Overestimating is how burnout starts.
Log your check-ins for a week to spot patterns in your natural energy flow.
Exercise #2: Conscious Recovery Breaks
The Victim believes rest = loss. The Warrior knows rest = fuel.
If the previous exercise was about gauging how much energy you have and then taking aligned action, this one is about using that same awareness to consciously schedule recovery periods. Instead of pushing through until you crash, you intentionally choose pauses that refill your tank; making sure your energy is working for you, not against you.
How to do it:
Check in with yourself anytime you feel your energy dip whether that’s mid-morning, after a big task, or toward the end of your work block.
Ask: “What kind of recovery would actually refill me right now?”
Is it a proper lunch break?
A short walk for fresh air?
A few minutes of scrolling or zoning out?
Or have you hit your capacity for the day’s load entirely and it’s time to turn off for the day?
Decide how much time you need: whether that’s 10 minutes, 1 hour, or the rest of the day, and give yourself full permission to enjoy your rest and relaxation.
Tips:
It takes time to learn the language of your body. At first, you might think you only need a quick break but over time you may notice that after 3–5 hours of deep work, you actually thrive with a full reset, like a proper lunch and a walk outside. Stay curious, experiment, and be gentle as you find your rhythm.
Exercise #3: The Warrior’s Breath Reset
The Victim runs on scattered, reactive energy. The Warrior knows how to pause, center, and return to full presence before making the next move.
This reset is a twist on traditional diaphragmatic breathing but with a deeper consciousness and attention-training layer. Instead of simply focusing on the mechanics of the breath and breathing into your belly, you use each cycle to pull your awareness entirely inward, away from external noise.
The goal isn’t just relaxation, it’s reclaiming your mental center so you can move forward from grounded choice rather than reactive energy.
How to do it:
Wherever you are: walking, working, or in between tasks bring your awareness into your belly.
Breathe deeply so the air first fills and expands your stomach before it moves into your chest (no anxious chest breathing, we want deep belly breaths)
Notice the depth of each inhale and go as deep as feels comfortable, without straining (you’re not here to push, you’re here to be present and let go)
Take 3 of these deep belly breaths back-to-back, keeping your full attention on the breath the entire time.
If your mind drifts to another thought, emotion, or outside distraction, start your 3 breaths over again from 1.
Only when you’ve completed 3 full, undistracted breaths, return to whatever you were doing and you will feel a new grounded focus moving with you.
Why it works:
This technique short-circuits the Victim’s tendency to spiral in stress or external chaos by shifting your focus to a single, internal anchor point, belly breathing. As your nervous system calms, your decision-making shifts from reactivity to intention. The amount of time this takes is just a direct indication of how out of balance your nervous system was before you began.
Final Thoughts on the Victim → Warrior Shift
Integrating the Warrior isn’t about becoming invincible or working nonstop. It’s about reclaiming your authority over your energy, trusting your ability to sustain results, and no longer living in fear of collapse.
When you stop seeing rest as weakness and start seeing energy as your most valuable currency, you stop leaking power into overwork, burnout, and hyper vigilance.
The Warrior moves with precision, not panic and once you embody that, your results aren’t something that are “hard to create” or “easy to disappear” and start becoming inevitable extensions of who you are.
Next in the Series: The Saboteur Shadow Archetype → Magician Energy, releasing next week.
That’s it for this edition. I share a new one every Monday. Join the list here so you don’t miss the next drop.
