Have You Reached Your Full Potential?

Have you reached your full potential? Would you know it if you did?

This idea sticks with me. Like most things I find intriguing, it came from a skate interview, where someone shared that their biggest fear in life is not reaching their full potential.

I have that fear too. Then, cue another tangential interest of mine; on a coffee podcast, I learned that during self-assessment cognitive testing, people always consider themselves much smarter and more proficient than they actually are, leading to consistent letdowns when their results are revealed.

Yep, that sounds about right. Bet it's the same for personal potential, too. Maybe we all peak somewhere and don't even realize it because our perception of self far exceeds reality.

In my twenties and thirties, I wouldn't have believed this. Now, in my forties with two small kids, trying to excel at anything outside of being a dad and husband seems impossible. This might be it. Peak potential reached, with most signs in life pointing to it being the best use of it. True, but far from the stereotypical delusions of grandeur and success I've always held.

In my experience, some of the most talented, successful, full-potential-reaching people I've met spend very little time thinking or talking about doing the things, trying to show people they're doing the things, or writing about the things — they're simply doing the work, improving, and producing rapidly.

Yet here I am, still thinking on it and coming up with imaginary personal potential fulfillment scales.

Low Potential – Low Problems — Where you are is where you'll be. Much like comparison, expectation is the thief of joy. If you don't have large delusions of grandeur, it's much easier to be content with where you land. Content doesn't get enough credit.

Self-Inflicted Purgatory of Mediocrity — Holding onto delusions of greatness with an inflated identity, while paralyzed by the inability to make big moves, try new things, and heaven forbid, fail massively and learn from it. Stuck in the stability of pretty good work, safety, familiarity and if you stay at it long enough, mediocrity.

Pursuing Potential Daily — Most entrepreneurs, peak performers, and full-potential-reachers live here. Progressing and pushing their personal envelope comes as naturally as breathing. Second-guessing and overthinking are present, but minuscule in comparison to the drive to improve and an unfaltering belief that they can do it better. Achievements are high, with the costs to match.

Where are you? Where do you want to be?

Striving to reach full potential guarantees improvement. But the peak will always be out of reach. For better or worse.