It’s about that time of year when people start thinking about the changes they want to make once January 1st rolls around.
I don’t do New Year’s Resolutions (because the calendar doesn’t dictate when it’s time to make change; it can only confirm that it’s time to change, bc that time is always NOW), but it made me wonder: what is the most basic element of making progress?
Making changes is no mediocre effort. It is, literally, re-writing your entire self. It’s removing what exists (e.g. patterns & habits), and rewiring an entirely new system.
It’s not easy (ever seen someone have to re-pipe their entire house? …and that’s a house; not a HUMAN PSYCHE).
But, it IS simple:
Stop wasting your potential.
Cool, thanks for the advice, H…
Wait, hear me out.
In order to stop wasting your potential, you have to recognize what your potential truly IS.
Your potential is a real thing. It’s not some abstract notion about your essence as a person, no, IT’S A NOUN. It’s your built-in qualities and abilities. It is all the things that can be developed, all the tools in your toolbox which are useful for your future success in achieving the life you want.
Your potential is everything about you. Your personality. Your interests. Your physical body & the things you can do with it. Your knowledge. Your hobbies. Your entire life story is your potential.
Everything that’s happened to you, everything you’ve done, ALL OF IT can be used to live a life that is, holistically, pleasing. Everything is experience that you can leverage to help you improve, starting from the moment you recognize it within yourself.
Once you recognize your potential, you can direct that awareness–your choice of thoughts and actions, the way you choose to look at the world–to work for your benefit.
Take a moment to recognize all the things, “good” and “bad”, that make you up. Appreciate them & yourself for having them. Now, with that newfound appreciation, make this the moment you begin to use it all for positive growth.
If you want to move up, you’ve gotta let go not only of the things bringing you down, but of the notion anything else but you has power of determination over you. All the things and ways that waste your potential have GOTS TA GO.
Stop wasting your time…
- With distractions. If it’s not making you better, what’s it doing?
- With the same. old. shiz. The same argument you’re having; it’s time to stop the go-round & fix it.
- The same schedule you keep; if it hasn’t gotten you where you want to be yet, it’s not going to ever.
- With TV. What is TV doing for you anyway? Is it making you rich, healthy, smart? Most of the time, no. Television rarely adds value to your life, so why invest so much of yourself in it?
Time is like a Great White Shark: it doesn’t go in reverse. Once it’s gone, kiss it goodbye.
Besides, aren’t you trying to build a life you don’t need an escape from?
Don’t disconnect. Plug in more… TO YOURSELF.
Stop wasting your health.
And stop wasting your money on the stuff that ruins it.
Ooh, double whammy.
Health, finances, homework when you were out sick… playing catch-up, trying to recoup, sucks. Having to give a bunch of effort, all at once, just to recover from a setback is deflating, exhausting.
You can’t always prevent illness, but you can prevent you from setting yourself back.
It’s all about awareness, paying attention to what effects your thoughts and actions have. And then, making the proper corrections.
Why?
Because you want to…
Stop wasting you.
Destructive thoughts lead to destructive habits. Destructive habits make for a destroyed life. Set positive goals & make the positive moves that truly get you there. Don’t simply talk the talk, then fail to walk the walk.
Luckily, we have the power to stop the negative cycles for ourselves. Again, through recognition and awareness.
You are not the things that have happened to you. You may have passed through events, but you emerged because of who you are. You are a resilient being meant for amazing things.