Our Human Potential: Awareness and Influence
How does our internal and external environment grow or hinder our human potential? Every question of our human potential leads me to a forefront answer.
Mindset.
Our mindset determines what we believe we are capable of. Therefore, it plays a leading role in our own potential. Those who acquire great success in the eyes of others embody a strong growth mindset. Rather than questioning and comparing their current potential against what they hope to accomplish, they ask themselves what they need to learn or have in order to achieve it. With dedication and hard work, they go after what they want.
Self-Awareness: Insight into our Human Potential.
When I started to explore my own potential, I began a deep introspection of who I was to myself and to others. Examining my thoughts, feelings, behaviors. Analyzing my environment. What am I capable of?
I came up with some answers, only to realize that I was limited in a sense. Why? Because I had molded a mindset that imposed these limitations. Ask yourself what do you want out of this life and why.
Why?
Really let that sink in, because it’s ultimately the most important question.
Now why can you not have it?
“I’m not ready, it’s not the right time, Maybe in the future.
I don’t know how to do that, I don’t have the financial means.”
Those who are successful never had these answers. Instead they asked themselves, “How do I get it, and what do I need to learn?”And they actively learn. They make it a habit, implemented into a daily or weekly practice.
Question your internal and external environment.
An unhealthy mindset views adversity, failure, and difficulties as…
unfavorable, meant to be avoided, and debilitating.
Hindering our human potential.
A healthy mindset views adversity, failure, and difficulties as…
an opportunity to grow, learn, and seek meaning.
Expanding our human potential.
A mindset that seeks and welcomes opportunity in all forms expands our potential.
Our mindset cannot only be applied in the case of struggle or setbacks. Even facing great opportunities, we find ourselves creating self-imposed limitations. We may avoid this opportunity from the fear of failing. For years, I lived with an unhealthy mindset, struggling to cope with adversity, and avoiding most opportunities out of a fear of failure. I had one assumption: I believed that adversity and failure broke me down, and were negative and unfortunate circumstances. I was also under the impression that my thoughts and beliefs were assumed to be true just from the mere fact that they existed.
The existence of thoughts do not make them a truth.
Opposing views and thoughts exist for everything. I made a conscious decision to analyze my thoughts as they arose, and the lens of perspective which my mind chose to adopt. I chose to view adversity and failure as a gift, an opportunity to grow, seek meaning, and learn a new lesson. A chance to expand my human potential. In the midst of a thought or perspective, I would slow down and question whether or not it was empowering or destructive. Is this mindset reducing my human potential or expanding it?
We all have the ability to bend, mold, modify our beliefs, at any given moment. Instilling this as a primary belief takes continuous conditioning. Our habits and conditioned nature will revert to what it has been accustomed to until changes have been implemented with effort, grit, determination, and focused intent.
Our environment impacts our lives consciously and unconsciously.
The words we hear from our friends, families, and strangers. The beliefs we choose to share with those around us. The content we consume online and through television. The energy of our surroundings and the energy we give and take from one another.
We need to take time to examine our environments. Are they benefiting, limiting, or hurting us?
We need to be surrounded by people, content, and environments that help us cultivate the type of mindset that allows us to take ahold of our human potential. A mindset that will cultivate joy, fulfillment, and resilience.
When I have refrained from consuming positive and informational content, I can find myself falling back into my old conditioned negative mindset. What we consume, what we talk about, what we hear, speak, think- has a profound impact on the way we live our lives.
Influencers- Family, Friends, Community, Culture, Media.
We establish trust among those we know, respect, love, admire. We may find ourselves adopting their views into our own lives, influencing our thoughts and actions. Our identity becomes composed of what others believe of us, what we believe of ourselves, and what the media tells us. Sometimes, we find ourselves unconsciously accepting all of these definitions whether or not we want to. Our view of ourselves is greatly connected with our own beliefs about our potential. The difference is made in what we choose to consume, the people we listen to, and how mindful we are throughout consumption.
We need to question our lives, the influence of our internal and external environments on our potential. How much of our perception is shaped from what our parents, friends, family, have told us. How much of our mind is formed through the content and media we consume. What are the false, limiting narratives we have created for ourselves? We need to break down our current beliefs, question their positive or negative effect on our life, and shift to healthy and empowering beliefs.
The content we consume shapes who we are and our perceived world.
What content are you consuming?
Looking back, I spent a lot of time watching shows constructed out of fiction. Thrillers, dramas, comedies. Netflix binge watching provided no real fulfillment in my life, yet I found myself trapped within it out of habit. I would spend hours scrolling through social media posts without understanding the implications of comparison, as well as wasted time. Often, it was mindless consumption and hindered my potential in a multitude of aspects.
We are able to consume more information than ever before. It is a gift, but can also be a trap, stealing time away from our own creations and expanding our own potential. The key to managing our consumption is intent. We need to mindfully consume, select our content with intent, and question the benefits versus the costs. Spend our time wisely, mindfully, and efficiently online.
Take Action: Be open, curious, and questionable.
Spend the next week devoted to awareness.
Throughout your day-to-day life, explore your habits, thoughts, and feelings. How long have you developed these? Where do they come from? Are they benefiting, limiting, or hurting your potential?
At the end of each day this week, take 20 minutes to self-reflect.
Journal your thoughts, feelings, and habits, and determine the role they play in your life.
What content did you consume and how much time did you spend? Does this content bring fulfillment and expand your potential? Is your environment supportive or unsupportive?
What mindset could you adopt that would better serve you and those around you?
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