When talking about YOUR potential, it can be an incredibly broad subject. It can range from what potential we have in our intelligence, physical health, mental health or how well we can socially interact.
As a whole, the first thing I think of when potential comes to mind is what are we capable of?
A lot of people underestimate their potential abilities and it can be for so many reasons.
As humans it can very easy to be held back from what we can really achieve if we truly put in the effort and set our minds towards achieving certain goals.
But despite this, that does not mean it’s impossible to become a master at our own games.
Whether it’s the ability to do work, have power and produce change, technical proficiency or becoming more unyielding, it is clear that too many factors are in our way from preventing us from reaching our true desired potentials.
I for one have by no means reached my potential and there’s nothing to be ashamed of!
I hope to venture on a journey alongside you to discover and unlock the answers to how we can build ourselves up and find our capabilities in hopes that we can become more accomplished in our personal goals!
These are some key reasons for why we are being held back from our potnetial…
For us to understand our potential, we need to look at who we are surrounded by, particularly who our friends are.
Ask yourself, if your friend or friends are holding you back from achieving your goals and getting onto the road to success
Are they bad friends? Are they compassionate friends who are always their for you on your good and bad days? Could they be hanging out friends? Could they be more than friends?
The friends you need are the ones who are able to lock your potential! They are there to enhance ability and unscramble ability within you.
This can come from compassionate friends who care for you and encourage you to push yourself even on your bad days.
They could be friends who are like-minded and share common interests with you, particularly when it comes to achieving similar goals.
These could be trying to make money together, sharpening your skills in a sport like football or basketball or even becoming better humans with the common interest of doing good for the world.
Who ever it is and whatever groups to hang out with, it is essential that you try to avoid those who have negative consequences towards you and your potential!
This is one of the simplest and most obvious aspects that the majority of us should implement into our lives and I am a strong believer that it is with good reason…
For one, it isn’t difficult to start exercising. I mean it’s as easy as simply doing push-ups right from where you’re probably reading this.
Working out just does not require an exercise science degree to do it, yet it yields valuable benefits for unlocking your conscious and physical potential. Why is this?
Endorphins are a fundamental chemical that improves your mental health. They are known as a happy chemical and they are a great way to invest in your health and mind.
Exercising is what keeps the mind stress-free and ensures that it along with our body is active and ready for whatever difficult tasks we aim to conquer.
Stress is one of the huge reasons for limiting our capacity to do work and is damaging to our health in the long-term.
For us to reach our true potential and achieve success, exercise should ALWAYS be something to incorporate into your daily lives.
You can have a look at my 5 ways to keep healthy without going to the gym right here because exercising doesn’t need to require the gym, especially if your are resourceful with what’s around you!
For those school, university or college students reading this, I’m sure that you or your mate have pulled an-all nighter, especially for an assignment due the next morning.
This is something that can have detrimental effects on your levels of proficiency at achieving goals.
There are so many negative impacts of sleep deprivation.
Impaired cognitive function: Sleep is crucial for your cognitive health. If you reduce your sleep, you could struggle from impaired decision-making, poor concentration and slower reaction times, all of which affect your ability to do work!
Mood disturbances: Poor sleep can contribute to mood swings, which can seriously put you off from working. It is a perfect reason for procrastination and something to absolutely try to avoid.
Weight gain and obesity: Poor sleep can disrupt the balance of hunger-regulating hormones, leading to increased appetite and cravings for unhealthy foods. This can contribute to weight gain and obesity.
Cardiovascular issues: Chronic sleep deprivation has been linked to an increased risk of hypertension, heart disease, and stroke.
Impaired physical performance: Lack of sleep can reduce athletic performance, coordination, and endurance. It can also slow down muscle recovery after physical activity.
So if there’s one thing you should absolutely do, it is value your sleep and stop pulling all-nighters!
Now let’s consider some more holistic factors.
I am a strong believer in the idea that the people you are surrounded by and the environment you are raised in will impact your mindset significantly.
They play a major difference in determining your passion and drive for success or the polar opposite of this…
It is for this reason that some of us may not actually realise what we are truly capable of and what technical proficiency in something we can really achieve!
I read up on a study by Barbara Rogoff, a famous professor of psychology who studied the traits of equity and fairness in children, where she found that children who are consistently handed rewards or opportunities without having to exert effort might develop a skewed understanding of success.
They may not associate success with effort and hard work, which can impact their drive to earn achievements.
While I believe this does not apply to everyone, I’m sure it can be understandable how this can limit one’s future potential.
Experiences are a fundamental part of learning and developing your passion for a craft, but if someone is brought up through a more luxurious lifestyle, that can tend to make if more difficult to be able to earn rewards and achieve personal goals, particularly if they aren’t being disciplined enough.
The key is to realise what it truly takes for you to unlock your potential and understand the value of earning your success.
We are living in a world that is at the pinnacle of technological innovation, but with all of these advancements, comes the consequences of social media and distractions plaguing our surroundings…
I’m sure we’ve experienced the impacts of social media in our daily lives, That might be why you’re reading this!
Think about all of the information, posts and videos you are absorbing from your screens.
Some may be useful, most of it is probably pointless and a waste of time.
All of this time you waste procrastinating could have been used to develop a new skill or work on a personal project, one that would be valuable to your future success!
What you need to do is eliminate these distractions.
Perhaps lower your screen time by 30 minutes everyday or if you need someone to encourage you whether it be a friend or your parents to supervise whatever procrastination you are indulging in, so be it.
If your friends are really forcing you to go out partying, don’t be afraid to hold yourself back and say “Sorry, I have work to do…”.
Your time is valuable and you need to invest in it wisely for you to unlock your potential!
This is something that can be very easy to fall victim to as I’ve experienced this so many times.
Comparing yourself to others will only slow down your journey on your road to success for numerous reasons:
When people set out a plan to achieve goals and make their way up the road to success, it ends up in them having the urge to take control of everything.
That’s probably because they don’t want other people or any external factors risking their hard work.
This is especially common when it comes to teamwork – Perhaps you’re working on a business, developing a successful product with some partners.
You may end up micromanaging every task because you may believe your vision and ideas for this business are fantastic.
The problem is that actually, micromanagement stifles creativity and growth…
If you choose to do all your partners’ work, because of this idea that you think they’ll mess up, you’re preventing them from contributing their ideas which may be even better than yours.
Also, just think about how over-crowded your mind will be with what tasks to do. This can lead to serious stress and no, I’m not talking about stress-strain curves (All you physicists and engineers out there know what I mean).
Things like this can seriously limit your potential, because if there’s one thing to learn, it’s to always embrace help from others with the same mindset as you. You can learn a lot more than if you were alone!
Stop questioning if what you’re doing is right or wrong. Life is all about trial and error and experimenting with what’s best for you or what isn’t.
Failing is better than not trying, because of the experience you gain. You know if what you did worked or didn’t which is far better than not trying in the first place.
So don’t doubt yourself and your abilities. If you think it might not work, do it anyways, because there’s a small chance you could actually succeed!
Excuses, excuses, excuses. Things that are absolutely important to avoid.
Why? Because not taking ownership for the consequences of your actions will only undermine you integrity and that is not improving your character and potential!
Show that you are responsible for your actions and don’t hesitate to shift the blame away from yourself. That will only make the people around you question your personality which you do not want to do if you want to surround yourself with people that have trust in you!
Ever heard of the saying “Getting handed everything on a silver plate.”?. Yeah that’s something you should try to not get into the habit of wanting to happen to you.
If you live your life waiting for something amazing to happen to you, you are not letting yourself develop as a character and reach your potential whether that’s in your technical proficiency or financial proficiency.
Earning that feeling of success through hard work and determination will always be better than getting handed that success.
It shows that you are an individual who is motivated, disciplined and hungry on your road to success and that is something that will make the people around you admire you!
Moreover, Being able to experience your own hard work pay off will only incetivise you to keep going and tht will only make your success story easier to achieve!
So what are you waiting for? Identifying what’s stopping you from hitting your potential and work on yourself. I am sure you will reach those long-term goals and success very soon!
