Reaching Your Full Potential in 7 Steps

When a person believes that they are meant for something greater, does it just stem from our own desire to improve ourselves or is there really something special in our destiny that we have yet to fullfill? There has to be some purpose, something out there that each individual has the potential to become. And I'm not talking about fate - not something that we are predispositioned to. I believe that all of us are born with an equal amount of tools that enables us to become whatever we want to be, to take on whatever obstacle we encounter, and to travel down any path we wish. However, only a handful of us are able to reach that full potential. In order to do so, I think there are seven things a person must first accomplish.

1. Don't be afraid to travel down multiple paths in search of the right one, you won't get it right the first time anyway. That IS what life is about afterall - learning from our mistakes to better ourselves.

2. Don't be afraid to think outside of the box. Magic, parallel universes, paranormal occurences (come on Star Trek and Star Wars fans back me up on this), maybe they do exist or maybe they don't. But one thing is for sure, what's the harm in believing in them? When you don't cage yourself in and are able to push away limitations and boundaries you open yourself up to so much more knowledge. "Dare to Dream."

3. Remove all doubt. If you are going to reach that full potential then you have to put your full heart into it; don't hold back! I'm not saying to push all your insecurities into the back of your mind and attempt to forget about them. The only way to remove them is to acknowledge them and deal with them, plain and simple. So gather up all that doubt you have, all of that fear and all of those insecurities and bring them forth. Figure out what caused them and why you reacted the way you did that allowed them to manifest themselves this way. In truth, you may not be able to find the reason for all of them, but that doesn't mean you still can't try to change them. If you have the will to change, then change will come. The only way to become is stronger is by facing our weaknesses. Some we can change and perhaps even banish, but one cannot do so for all of them. It's impossible to have absolutely no weaknesses - afterall there is no such thing as perfection. For the ones that we can't discard, the best we can do is to acknowledge their presence and avoid denial.

4. Be an individual. All of my favorite books revolve around this theme: "Brave New World," "The Host," "The Edge on the Sword." One cannot grow when confined to the collective. It is when you have the courage, determination and confidence to stray from others and stand on your own two feet that you will discover who you really are.

5. Be competitive, not with others but with yourself. Push yourself to the extremes and focus on bettering yourself. So what if you defeat someone else, this is only instant gratification. Being on top or the first to win the race may give you a power rush but defeating others is not what reaching your full potential is about.

6. Silence is golden. I know you probably all just had a flashback of those cardboard signs you used to see in elementary school, but they were right. Being quiet and observing and learning is just as important as initiating and doing. It is in silence that we can truly hear ourselves. That inner voice, that driving passion, those natural instincts can only be clearly heard when we are silent. These are the words you need to listen to as a guide, not the words of others.

7. I know how horribly cliche this is going to sound, but always have hope and never give up. There's only one thing worse that failing, and that's not trying at all. I seem to be telling my friends this constantly and they never seem to fully grasp what I am trying to say. Life consists of trial and error, victory and defeat, love and loss. Celebrate the good times and push through the bad. The worst outcome I can think of with people learning this step is getting stuck in a rut which coincides with giving up. It's always better to do something than to keep doing nothing, even if that something involves failing. Failing is a part of life and is a part of getting you closer to your full potential.

We make things so complicated, more so than necessary. The simplicity in life is hard to find but once found easy to obtain.