Have You Locked Your Potential Inside?

“Only you hold the key to unlock your true potential.” ~MW

Several years ago, I wrote an article that was inspired by a late-night TV commercial and my husband being the smart-aleck that he is. 😉

Then a few months ago, I ran across this article while I was looking for inspiration again… The interesting thing is, this time when I read what I’d written, it nudged me to heed my own advice. Below is the original article. Have a quick read and then at the bottom, I’ll explain why this article coming across my desk recently was exactly the nudge I needed right now.

Do you have a flavor lock lid keeping all your potential inside?

I was watching late night TV the other night and wondering what I should write this month’s article about. Looking for inspiration, I asked my husband if he had any ideas. It just so happened, at that moment, there was a commercial for coffee that had a flavor lock lid to keep all the freshness in. So my loving husband, being the helper he is, said, “Why don’t you write about that?” And since my daughters had sparked my thoughts already, I decided to take that challenge, so, here we go… 

I want to begin by posing a few questions to you:

• Are you holding all your potential in?  
• Do you think that maybe you’ve decided to lock in all you have to offer the world? 
• Are you afraid to open up and let the world know who you truly are?

Unlike the coffee, where having a flavor lock lid is a benefit, locking in your true potential and not allowing who you really are to come out is not only detrimental to you, but it is not serving the world in the best way possible either. The flavor lock lid may hold in all the greatness, but the greatness can’t be enjoyed or benefit others until it is let out, until it gets into some hot water and is allowed to release its full potential and be what it was intended to be. The same goes for you, if you keep all your greatness in, you will not realize your full potential nor will you be able to share it with the rest of the world. It is only when you let it out, take a few risks, get into some hot water, that you are able to reach your greatness and truly enjoy life. 

My challenge for you; snap off the lid that keeps your true authentic self locked up inside and fill up your cup with the real greatness that you possess. When you do that, your cup will literally overflow with opportunities and successes. And continue to flow out to everyone you touch. Here's to unlocking your potential and filling your cup! 

So why was this article so timely? Well recently I’ve had several opportunities to collaborate with a few other companies and provide coaching for them. Which I really am excited about… but, truth be told, I’ve wanted to do this for a while now and previously had not. Why? Well perhaps, I’ve been holding my potential in and not allowing myself to flourish. Not taking action on something you want to do usually boils down to some sort of fear. For me, it’s been about being afraid the process would be hard and take too much of my time. And that I would not be able to successfully fulfill our agreement to serve their clients at a high enough level. Yeah, I know… I totally got trapped into that old fear that I wouldn’t be “good enough”. (It happens to all of us at times!) But because of this old article, I ended up not only saying yes to these companies, but I’ve also gotten wonderful feedback from them and the clients I’m serving. This old article reminded me of three lessons:

1. Fear keeps you locked up more than anything else and it’s the biggest, hardest lock to break. But to reach your full potential, you must break free of it.
2. Only I can unlock my potential and likewise, only you can unlock yours.
3. If you have a desire within you to share your gifts (your greatness and your goodness) with the world, it’s important not to keep it locked inside.

So many people let fear keep their potential locked up and their gifts hidden even though what they have to share could be really valuable and is no doubt needed by someone. So whether you are wanting to start your own business, be an influencer, a better spouse, mother or friend… don’t hold back any longer. Take a risk, unlock your potential and let it out! 

***Ready to let your potential out? Check out the Heroic Performance App to guide you to open the lid on your potential today!