What is Human Design & How has it Helped Me?

Let’s get metaphysical ~

What is Your Unique Energetic Blueprint?

Imagine if you received an instructional guide on how to best use the energy that you have, what different parts of your being make you unique, and give you insight into the overarching theme of your life’s purpose.

This is what Human Design has been for me. 

But first, What is Human Design?

Human Design is a metaphysical system of self-discovery that synthesizes ancient wisdom and theories. They include Western astrology, the Chinese I Ching, the Kabbalah from Jewish roots, and the Vedic Chakra system. The Human Design system was channeled by Robert Allan Krakower, who later changed his name to Ra Uru Hu, in 1987. The system is based on the notion that each individual has a unique energetic blueprint.

Each individual has a specific "design" based on their birth information, which is determined by their specific birth time, date and location. This design is represented by a body graph, which is a visual representation of the individual's energetic makeup. The foundational information you receive from the body graph includes what your energetic aura type is, your best strategy moving forward, what happens when you’re out of alignment, and what and where your inner authority source is. You can continue to delve into the advanced information that gives you specific details about further information based on your energetic mechanics.

Human Design is often used as a tool for self-discovery and personal growth. By understanding your unique design, you can deeply know your strengths, weaknesses, and life purpose.

How has Human Design helped me? It has helped me to: 

  • Realise my Confidence and Clarity

    I was running around, running a business using all the wrong strategies, and doing things that society tells me to because it’s the “norm”. Yet this burned me out so quickly, and I even felt so discouraged to continue working at my business, and trying new techniques. Yet Human Design has given me the gift of standing up courageously after falling and being more confident in who I am and what aligned strategies I should use. For example, as Projector, I have a very penetrating aura. In the past, I used to assert my opinions without being asked. Yet, now I know to share my expertise when I’m invited to. I respect energetic boundaries and form meaningful relationships. I don’t have to force anything now, all the abundance just aligns.  


  • Human Design has confirmed what I always felt to be true, but was taught to think otherwise

    In Human Design, the term “conditioning” is used, which means to be influenced by another’s energy. And as someone who is more easily influenced by others’ energy, it was a light bulb moment when I realised I’d been trying so hard to emulate other’s strategies of working hard relentlessly like a marathon runner when actually I work best when I work smart and in bursts of energy like a sprinter. 

  • Get to Know Who I Really Am

    My whole life I realised I was hiding behind a mask, and portraying myself as a version of someone I thought I should be. Does that resonate with you? I was so entrenched in the ego aspect and always was fighting for respect, approval and popularity. Yet, now that I don’t have to fight anymore because I know my true strengths, and befriend my shortcomings. These facts and strengths about myself reveal who I really am, and I don’t have to be inferior or misunderstood, I can finally feel and own my uniqueness. Bundled in with a growth mindset, I don’t enmesh with the voices that create doubt and negativity. Yet when I know my strengths, I know what works for me, and what doesn’t. 

  • Understand how to optimise my energy and be productive

     Whether we’re acutely aware of it or not, we often describe ourselves daily as feeling low energy or high energy. You know - those afternoon slumps after lunch when you’ve had too much rice and just want to nap, or having too much coffee and or sugar and feeling like bouncing off the walls. While these are external sources that influence our energy source, we all have our own reserves of energy. One’s energy reserves don’t always look the same as another’s. Through understanding my energy source and reserves, I’ve learned how to use efficiently use my energy, conserve it, and strategies. It has been incredibly empowering to know that I know what expands or depletes my energy. I love that I can work smart now, and I don’t have to conform to what others are doing.

  • Become in touch with my body's wisdom

    Before Human Design, I’d always use the term “I think” to move forward in decision-making, but now I know to ask myself how “I feel” about it. Through research from The Body Keeps the Score, it’s proven that trauma can be transformed when the mind, brain and body connection are aligned and seen. As the author, Bessel Van Der Kolk writes, “When we cannot rely on our body to signal safety or warning and instead feel chronically overwhelmed by physical stirrings, we lose the capacity to feel at home in our own skin and, by extension, in the world.” Now that I know my Human Design Blueprint, I realised I was trying to intellectualise everything, and that I’m prone to do so. Unfortunately, from this intellectualisation, I was operating as a human pressure cooker. Alternatively, now that I learned to trust my body's wisdom, I make aligned decisions instead of ruminating about why things aren’t “working out”. 


What are the origins of Human Design? And Reconciling with Cultural Appropriation in Human Design 

Human Design is a metaphysical and mechanical system that synthesizes ancient and modern wisdom including Astrology, the i-Ching, the Kabbalah, the Hindu-Brahmin Chakra System and Quantum Physics. It was synthesised by Ra Uru Hu in 1987.  When I first heard about Human Design and researched its history, my initial thoughts were, “A metaphysical system that came into existence through realisations from a white man? No thanks. 

Yet, the more I learn about my design, the more it has undeniably resonated. I’m liberated by the awareness of truly knowing myself. 

Human Design teaches me to listen to my body and my energy. And as mentioned earlier, before diving into my Human Design I felt like a headless chicken running around, trying to run my business, spiralling into burnout every day. I decided that the more I learned about how my energy operates, I wouldn’t have to return to that horrible state of burnout anymore. The more I’ve learned about my energy type, the more I’ve been able to show up authentically as myself, in my own energy. For example, it’s asking questions like, “Am I a battery that needs to be charged, or am I a panel that needs solar power?” I need to know what gives me energy so I can thrive and not just survive. I need to know my strategy so I can become a better entrepreneur and coach. 


Quite frankly, it took a year and a half for me to really dive into Human Design (shoutout to Patti Dayleg for this interstellar introduction!) Yet through this experience, I had so many “AHA!” moments. It just resonated so deeply. All of these qualities about myself I had been experiencing were coming to light. I’m able to finally embrace the qualities and behaviours I spent my whole life rejecting. With Human Design, I found a new way to celebrate and love myself for who I am, instead of pushing and forcing myself to be someone who I’m not. 


How I’m reclaiming the practice and reconciling with cultural appropriation in Human Design

How I’m reclaiming the practice and reconciling with cultural appropriation in Human Design is by recognising that there is a facet of my culture that is embedded in the system, which is the I-Ching. Most importantly, my Human Design mentor, Fiona Wong of The Wild Pixel has been a north star in unpacking this. She says, “Part of me believes that if Human Design is a form of cultural appropriation, my existence and work in the system takes it back.” I wholeheartedly agree and believe in this. I’m writing this now, and standing up to reclaim this. 

I make an effort to learn about the system from teachers and readers of colour and research more diverse perspectives who are talking about Human Design. (I’ve included a few references of the teachers I learn from below!) I’m working to apply my background, knowledge, and lens as an Asian Woman who has undergone conditioning from others. I feel in tune with the purpose and mission of contributing on my part to raise collective consciousness, in a meaningful, authentic, and aligned way. I don’t have to hang by threads to survive, and can easily glide into my era of thriving. I’ve been working on my own offering of Human Design, and I can’t wait to share this with you soon

Thank you so much for reading this. If this article resonated with you, please send me an email at connect@yin-ki.com.

I’d love to hear from you!

As mentioned above, the BIPOC Human Design Readers and Teachers I love include: 

Yinki Nicole Wong