Author: cbarney.45

How can you put yourself in a position to reach your full potential? Start with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs…

First and foremost, you need to be able to have access to food, water, and shelter. It is impossible to reach your full potential without first having your basic physiological needs covered.

After that, we dive into your psychological/emotional needs. You need to feel safe and secure.

Also, you need to have a support system…whether you have the love of your life, a best friend, or a group of friends/colleagues that you can confide in, you need to be able to share not just your problems/issues with someone, but you need to be able to share your hopes and dreams with at least one person. You should not be afraid that they will ridicule you. You should be able to share anything and everything with them.

Third, you need to have a healthy self-esteem. You need to have confidence in yourself. If you don’t believe in yourself, you can never reach your full potential. How do you build confidence? By becoming competent. How do you become competent? By conducting purposeful research, undergoing trial and error experiments, and repeating (after you implement tweaks to what you’ve learned during the trial and error phase). Competence breeds confidence.

Once you have fulfilled the above needs, you can reach the self-actualization portion of the pyramid. It is at this point that reaching your full potential is within your grasp. You are so close, but this is not the end! Many people get to this level of the pyramid and stop. They think they’ve made it. But you never actually reach your full potential. There is always more – you’re capable of more than you think you are. But once you reach self-actualization, you begin to realize what you can be. At this point you can start working on creative pursuits and take on more risk, thus bringing you closer to reaching your full potential.

“No man ever steps in the same river twice.” – Heraclitus

The world is constantly changing around us, just as we are constantly changing as well.

Have you ever gone back and reread a book, only to discover that it has taken on new meaning to you? Or that a particular passage speaks differently to you?

It can be hard for us to tell sometimes, but we are gradually changing everyday. And by the time a year or even a decade passes, we can essentially be a completely different person in regards to how we act, feel, and think.

The same is true for our surroundings. That river, that forest, or that city that you once visited is constantly changing. It will never be the same.

It is important to not cling too much to past events or how you felt the last time you read or experienced that book or that vacation. While we crave experiencing new things, sometimes it is better to go back and revisit things that you once knew. Because you will discover that even though certain aspects will seem familiar, it won’t be the same. No man ever steps in the same river twice.

Be mindful of the opinions that you let in (this includes other people’s opinions, but also your own).

Don’t keep naysayers or pessimists around. Their attitudes and opinions will rub off on you if you let them. Instead, surround yourself with positive thinkers and doers. If you have trouble finding these people, look to books to aid in your pursuit. Read about Teddy Roosevelt, Marcus Aurelius, and Jesus. Read Dale Carnegie, Stephen Covey, and Jim Collins. Learn about innovators such as Thomas Edison, Nikola Tesla, and even Albert Einstein. Imagine learning lessons from history’s most influential minds and how they can positively impact your life.

Don’t forget to also be careful of what you tell yourself, whether it is positive self talk or negative. Remember, when things are going well, you’re never as good as you think you are, just as when things are going poorly you are never as bad as you think you are. There is always some element of luck involved in the result. It’s your job to control what you are able to control and let go of the rest.

“Formal education will make you a living. Self-education will make you a fortune.” – Jim Rohn

Getting more degrees (formal education) usually means having more employment opportunities. Our current school system is set up to teach kids/young adults how to be employees.

What is more valuable than a college diploma is knowing how to self-educate. Reading about, learning, and implementing useful information can take you further in life than having some extra letters tacked on to the end of your email signature (B.S., M.S., etc). Being able to self-educate opens doors for you that others may not even know exist.

I know a lot of people with a college education who make less than those who never went to or didn’t graduate from college. Having a degree means that you know how to pass a test, but it does not tell a company that you know how to provide value for them.

I recently read the poem below that Coach John Wooden memorized and shared with others. It has to do with being a father and the impact that you have on your children/the impact that your children have on you. Being a relatively new father, this poem has inspired me to live my best life and to always try to act the right way, because my son is always watching…

A careful man I want to be —

a little fellow follows me.

I do not dare to go astray,

for fear he’ll go the self-same way.

I cannot once escape his eyes.

Whatever he sees me do he tries.

Like me he says he’s going to be —

that little chap who follows me…

He knows that I am big and fine —

And believes in every word of mine.

The base in me he must not see —

that little chap who follows me…

But after all it’s easier,

that brighter road to climb,

With little hands behind me —

to push me all the time.

And I reckon I’m a better man

than what I used to be…

Because I have this lad at home

who thinks the world of me