There is nothing worse than unused potential. The idea that one can do and be so much more yet chooses not to.

I’m not saying that everyone has to strive for total optimization like some machine, and you definitely have the right to be exactly who you want to be.

But wouldn’t it be so much more fulfilling to see what you really CAN be?
To push those limits and see what you can do?
Maybe try your hardest and leave it all out there, even just once.

By pushing far out of your comfort zone, you might just show yourself (and others) what you really can achieve once you eliminate all of those self-defeating thoughts and self-sabotaging behaviors.

In business, it’s about how much you invest in yourself, what you do the night before that big day to prepare.

In life, it’s what you do every day to ensure you’re the best version of yourself: your habits.

For instance, how much sleep you get.
Your diet and cutting back on alcohol.
How many workouts you complete (even the ones you weren’t into).
Who you spend time with and how often.
And if those people elevate you, encouraging you to be the best version of yourself.

Who challenges YOU to be the best?!

A friend of mine said to me the other day, “Don’t waste it. Show yourself and everyone around you how good you are.”

The problem for me is that I have never felt that “good.”

I was never the best at anything. So, I grew up always feeling like I needed to prove something, to show that I was worthy, that I could do it. I had (and maybe have) a chip on my shoulder, as they say.

In sports, I was always the worst player on the best team. That didn’t mean I wasn’t good, but just that others had more natural talent than I did.

So, I had to outwork them. I had to push harder; eliminate the noise.

But the thing about eliminating the noise is that sometimes you don’t hear some of the things you need to hear as well.

You see, it’s okay to be realistic about your talent, to know who you are and what your gifts are. There’s nothing wrong with that.

But what I’ve learned is that it’s NOT okay to just do something half-ass, to leave things unfinished, to quit something that is truly important to you.

So, as we now look to finish up 2023 and start a new year with fresh hopes, I am choosing to re-focus.

I will push harder.
I will strive to fulfill my potential.
I will leave it all out there and be the best version of who I am.

And I’ll do it for me – not to prove anything to others.

So, when 2024 begins, I will know who I am and what I am here to do.

Try it. You may even surprise yourself!

-J.D.