The Funny Thing About Potential

• It’s never gone
• It’s aways waiting
• It’s always avaiable
• It’s always willing to be redeemed at a moment’s notice

But there is a little problem we encounter along the way.
Potential is hard because Netflix is easy.
Potential is hard because Instagram is easy.
Potential is hard because Facebook is easy.

You might not often think about companies like that in the same sentence as your own potential, but you should.

Twitter (now X) doesn’t want you to start a new business. TikTok doesn’t want you to run a half-marathon. HBO Max doesn’t want you to write a book. Even dating apps don’t want you to have a long, healthy marriage because then you’ll never end your paid subscription to their service.

Whenever you dare to spend more time exploring your potential and less time distracted, hundreds of thousands of people get very nervous. It’s true. The modern world is designed to keep you from living up to your full potential.

 Do you know the goal of every single one of the 58,456 employees at Facebook? To distract you. They’re not trying to connect you with old friends from high school. They don’t care that you love chinchillas and found a group of other people in your area who love them too. They’re not trying to educate you about the news. They’re trying to turn your attention into ad revenue.  And they should be! There are entire companies whose complete business model is your time. So if you are finding it difficult to make time to live up to your expectations, your potential, think about it – the odds are stacked against you.

Why did this happen? Why is it harder for you to tap into your full potential now? Because distraction technology scaled faster than our ability to focus.

 The odds may be stacked against you when it comes to realizing your full potential, but the house doesn’t have to win this game.
-Jon Acuff, as told in “All It Takes Is A Goal”

“To reach your potential, you must grow. And to grow, you must be highly intentional about it.”
-John C. Maxwell

“The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.”
-Ralp Waldo Emerson

“Believe in your infinite potential. Your only limitations are those you set upon yourself.”
-Roy T. Bennett

“There is no man living who isn’t capable of doing more than he thinks he can do.”
-Henry Ford

“Being confident and believing in your own self-worth is necessary to achieving your potential.”
-Sheryl Sanberg