How To Acheive Your Full Potential

If you want to make more of your talents - live up to your full potential- you have to learn to use them. You have the power to change your habits- to acquire new skills and fully use the skills you now have. You canimprove your performance, your productivity, and the quality of your wholelife.

What makes a high achiever? Is it luck, intelligence, talent, dedication?All of these things figure in - they all make a difference. But we allknow intelligent, talented, hard-working people who do not considerthemselves very successful or even happy. And we know people who are notexceptionally bright but seem happy and successful.

So there must be something else, some secret to success. Actually thereare several secrets to achieving your peak performance - living up to yourfull potential.

Your success at Business is largely determined by your own self-image. Your unHappinessis something you choose. So, you're thinking no one chooses to be unhappy.Well, maybe not - but you have to consciously choose to be happy,self-confident, and successful.

Happiness is elusive when we go after it directly. So is self-confidence.Both seem to be more "side-products" than something you can achieve in andfor itself. So how, then, can consciously choosing to be these things beof any value? Well, the secret is to focus on other things.

First, focus on your potential. Begin by making a complete and accurateassessment of your potential. To do this you must take an inventory ofyourself - you will make a few lists. Sit down and make a list of all thethings you can do well. Be honest with yourself. When that list is done,make a list of all the things you like to do, even if you think you can'tdo them well. Then, make a list of all the things you would like to do, ifyou could. Now list your hobbies.

Then, go back to the list of things you can do well. You are probablybeing much too hard on yourself. Most of us are. We have this littlevoice in our heads telling us things like: "You're so dumb," or "You can'tlearn to do that," or "You never do anything right," or similar nastythings. And even worse, we listen to that voice as if it's telling us thegospel truth. So now, shut off that voice - you can do it - and add a fewmore things to the list of things you can do well. Pretend you are yourbest friend - it's amazing how much more forgiving and charitable we arewith our friends than we are with ourselves. Now that you are your bestfriend, you should be able to add a few more items to your "do well" list.But do be honest - don't list things you feel you really can't do well.

Next, go to your list of things you like to do but you feel you don't dowell. Speaking as your own best friend, do you think there are some thingson this list that could be moved to your "do well" list? There probablyare. If you like to do it, chances are you do pretty well at it. Treatyour hobby list in the same manner.

Next, go to your list of things you would like to do if you could. Askyourself, "Why can't I do this, if I'd like to?" Put your reasons onanother list. OK. So you have a lot of lists going - what good is thatgoing to do? Well, you have just made an assessment of yourself. If youhave been truly honest in making these lists, it may even be a fairlyaccurate assessment. Probably it isn't, but that's OK. This assessmentisn't carved in stone. It's subject to change. But for now we will workwith what's on the lists. At least you have a place to start.

Look over your lists again. You are focusing on all the things you feelyou can't do and the reasons why you can't do them, right? Well, don't.FOCUS ON WHAT YOU CAN DO - FOCUS ON YOUR POTENTIAL. Make it a habit tofocus on your strengths. Don't forget to include your undevelopedpotential, as well. Train yourself to focus on your potential instead ofyour limitations.

Now that's not to say that you should ignore your list of reasons for notdoing some of the things you would like to do. Not at all! But look atthem from the viewpoint of your strengths. For instance, you'd like toplay basketball but you think you are too short, so you don't even try. Inthis case, you are looking at it from the viewpoint of your limitations.Now, when you look at it from the viewpoint of your strengths, you wouldsay, "Well, I may be pretty short to play, BUT I am fast. I can handle the