ACHIEVING YOUR TRUE POTENTIAL

Sometimes an individual is able to succeed, grow and prosper because of a unique perspective, appropriate timing (right place/right time), or plain good luck in spite of the things that are consciously done to create the success.  More often, however, much planning, analyzing, modeling, and “sweat equity” go into bringing dreams to fruition (the assumption being that dreams, hopes and/or goals are set so that a definition of accomplishment exists).  An individual must selflessly invest his or her time, money and effort to realize the returns that inevitably come when one mortgages short-term leisure time for long-term rewards.  While the creation of jobs and the return of wealth to a community may be offshoots of profitable business, they are simply the byproducts of an individual realizing his or her dreams and leveraging the abilities of many to bring to harvest the seeds planted and nurtured to maturity. 

One must closely monitor progress and constantly identify obstacles that could hinder the accomplishment of goals – either avoiding or minimizing their negative impact – to help guarantee success.  Changes to established plans should be considered carefully before acting, but actions should be intentional (rather than reactive or simply the avoidance of taking action) to deter any situation that left unaddressed could disrupt or encouraged could enhance a potential result.  A business will never reach its full potential should a leader focus too intently upon the path rather than the prize at its conclusion.  Similarly, an individual will never reach his or her full potential unless a destination has been established and a path considered before beginning the journey that would lead to success is initiated.

Business success can be directly linked to the ability of stakeholders contributing freely and creatively to growth.  In order to leverage the power of people an organization must foster and encourage personal development.  Though focused training (or even encouraging employees to use an organization’s educational reimbursement program) can help to develop individual strengths, abilities and self-confidence, encouraging employees to envision the future and where he or she may fit then empowering them to speak openly about their ideas are necessary for an individual to reach their goals BUT one must establish an objective before it can be successfully achieved.  When expected to think about what they WANT to be, WANT to accomplish or realistically EXPECT to achieve, people will take on a totally different perspective than if they are told to do something.  To taste success one must start with a conclusion - a goal or set of expectations – before embarking upon the path that would lead to accomplishment.  Without an end point, one will never know when they have arrived, how far along the trail they might be or how far they might yet need to travel.  Life without purpose can be eventful but is rarely satisfying – it may be full of new beginnings but may meander meaninglessly without “ends.”  In fact, doing what another says may move someone towards the accomplishment of another’s goals but rarely will it cause someone to act on their own so any harvest will be limited to the expectations expressed and expected by another.  Actions will become important to individuals only when they see and believe that something is important – when they see the potential gain is far greater than any possible loss.  Recognizing that failing and losing are a natural part of winning and gaining is essential – people must give themselves permission to fall as long as they internally establish an expectation to get back up and move forward.  Learning does not come from failing – it comes from recognizing what caused the shortcoming and avoiding making the same mistake twice.

Once a goal has been established an individual must determine how it could be accomplished.  What knowledge or ability must be attained to equip one with the experience and resources necessary to achieve the goal?  Who must be brought into the solution (and who might it be better to exclude from its execution)?  Training (or even planning) is far too often an afterthought to the accomplishment of a dream.  When we start “doing” without first thinking we may taste limited success but our accomplishments may be achieved in spite of ourselves rather than because of anything that was intentionally done.  Organizations can play an active role in this providing the environment in which individuals can experiment, the tools or training they may need to gain experience or knowledge, and the climate in which they can succeed – but “providing” is often not enough...expecting engagement and holding one accountable for results are both necessary to produce tangible results.  An accomplished and educated individual may or may not be able to leverage their past experiences to achieve great things.  To achieve greatness, people MUST steadfastly advance towards the realization of their dreams – something that is impossible to do unless and until one thinks about what they want to do and where they want to go – what they hope to become and how they wish to contribute – in life.  In order to continually move forward, systems must be put in place to identify obstacles that could hinder progress AND grant permission to individuals that they can act to make warranted changes.  An individual will never reach their full potential should he or she focus too intently upon the path rather than moving towards the prize at its conclusion.  Likewise, an organization will never leverage the power of its people if they are kept in the dark, expected to “do” rather than to question, and stifled by a fear of failure rather than being allowed to grow and learn from making mistakes.

Some may hold onto the memories of their past, reveling in thoughts of what has been accomplished while finding satisfaction in where they live within the moment.  They often find comfort in living a life of “good enough” as they validate their worth by being “better than those around them” (even if they have to bring others down to make themselves feel better).  They are content to live just within another’s shadow as long as they are free to bask in the warmth of their past glory. These individuals are like “good” employees – the may do nothing wrong but rarely do anything outstanding.  Others tend to look through the windshield rather than through the rear view mirror as they travel life’s highways.  They frame their lives by questioning “Why...?” or “What if...?” as they move forward, always seeking to expand their capabilities by developing their resources.  They rarely see “good enough” as being acceptable because they constantly “reach for the sky” rather than being content to stand upon the floor that the limitations of others has established.  Those that seek to live up to their full potential establish internal goals and expectations that build upon who and what they are.  While seeking to be better each day they compete against themselves by challenging their own ideas, expanding their abilities and seeking to be more than they are rather than pulling others down so they look better.  Success comes to those seeking it, NOT to those seeking to keep others from achieving it. 

One’s potential is not measured by what he or she has done but rather by what he or she is capable of doing.  The potential of an individual is not an accounting of where he or she has been nor a comparison against the accomplishments of others.  It is anticipating what the future could be IF NOT limited by past accomplishments or present comforts.  In order to reach your full potential you must build upon (rather than being content within) all you have done as you intentionally seek all that you might yet do.  Take the time to chart a path upon which you can travel and set your targets high in all that you do, say or wish to accomplish.  Unless (and until) one begins, he or she can never expect to finish their journey.  Unless he or she has an objective it is rare that one can “finish the race.” A line drawn in the sand is meaningless unless one moves forward intending never to fall backwards beyond the self-imposed boundary.  In order to ACHIEVE one’s potential one must first realize that he or she HAS potential then must do everything within his or her power to bring that potential to fruition.  Everyone has the ability to do more with what they have – to reach goals they once thought unreachable or to accomplish things once thought to impossible. Visualize your objective, reach beyond where you have ever stretched and you will find yourself accomplishing more than you ever considered possible.