Are You Living Up To Your Potential?
Every day, I wake up thinking I’ll conquer my entire To-Do list, only to end up abandoning half of the tasks. Usually, those abandoned tasks are replaced by procrastination, YouTube videos, episodes of Modern Family, or maybe just staring at the ceiling.
We all have endless lists of tasks, goals, and ambitions, regardless of our status. Everyone’s got that “someday!” lingering in the back of their minds.
I knew a guy in college who was a great talker. He had a different ambition every other day and spun visionary tales of how he would achieve them in no time. He had great potential, not necessarily to fulfill those dreams, but to be a salesman or excel in any position that required smooth talking.
I would absolutely loathe that guy and call him out on his nonsense, saying, “What exactly are you doing to fulfill these dreams beyond imagination?”
But now, looking back, I realize I’m no better. Even I am not doing what it takes to get where I want to be.
Sure, I’m doing half of those things. I’m taking it slow and not burning myself out. But it’s not enough.
I feel the difference between failure and success lies in determination and hard work.
Of course, there are exceptions when other factors affect your progress, like money or mental health. But we, who have nobody stopping us and sometimes even have supporting friends, end up demotivated. We lack the passion that drives us towards our goals.
We end up wasting our potential when we could be so much more than we are.
Sometimes we don’t live up to our potential simply by not wanting more. There are rare instances when you reach way beyond your vision, but it doesn’t happen all the time. Sometimes we mentally restrict ourselves, build prisons of self-doubt, and create superficial ideologies that sabotage our own lives.
We end up missing the chance to chase what we can truly become.
If you feel something is missing in your life, if you spend more time thinking about your dreams rather than working towards them, if you feel nothing is good enough for you but you have to start from scratch — these are signs that you should strive to live up to your potential. You should keep pushing your boundaries and manifesting everything under the sky.
I hope you (& I) put down the phone and start today.
