I am delighted to have my friend Deb Ingino as a guest blog on Keep Thinking Big. Deb heads up a very successful leadership and coaching base in America. Deb has a great blog post to share with you today. I encourage you to read it and forward to your friends and contacts.

Autumn is one of my favorite times of the year and here in New York the colours are usually just spectacular.  I find it pretty remarkable that such a small seed can grow into the fullness of its’ potential and become this majestic and colourful bouquet.

While many people use the turn of the New Year as their time to reflect and reset, I have used this time of year as my time to reflect, reset and restart.

Most of us need a time to reflect and adjust our course and for many of us this is a great time to discover how we can move closer to our own potential.

You see, most of us never take the time (or get the help we need) to dig deep enough to find what our true gifts are. And so we go through life with this feeling of “lack of purpose”. That feeling is very often an indicator that we are not living up to our potential.

As you look to grow into your potential, here are some key things to remember.

  1. The past does not represent the future. Do you have old baggage – old failures – that are bringing you down? It is time to cut them loose – you have the power to do that. And, in fact, you must do that in order to move forward. So many people spend their lives looking at the scars of the past instead of moving on with what could be a wonderful and fulfilling life. You can’t drive a car whilst only looking in the rear view mirror.
  2. Remember the seed.  You may not see the oak tree in the acorn seed…but it is there. With nurturing and the right environment, it will grow strong and tall. And it will eventually provide shade for others and bear fruit of its own.
  1. Find your strength. Don’t look with envy at other peoples’ strengths. Never think that your strengths are not as important – they absolutely are! Your strengths can make a HUGE difference in someone’s life. It doesn’t matter if you’re an introvert or an extrovert, a scientist or a big-name speaker. Your strength is needed in the world. Take the time to discover your strengths and see how much potential there is!
  1. Focus on one main goal. Beware of shiny object syndrome this has sabotaged many businesses and organizations. Know your strengths and apply your strengths in a very focused fashion. It is better to reach one goal than to chase a million and never accomplish any. Instead of having a long list in your head of everything you want to accomplish, just pick one for the day and block out the time to complete it. Many people find getting up an hour earlier to focus on their one main goal, allows them to accomplish more and still have the remainder of the day ahead of them.
  2. Look for continuous improvement. Allow yourself to use the failures or the things that you think fell short to springboard you into doing the next best job. Life is a continual learning process, and as much as we don’t like it, the most important lessons come from failure. When you fail, stop, assess, recalibrate, and move on in a stronger fashion.
  3. Build an inner circle. Connect with others that can help speak into your life in the area or areas that you need to grow. You want people with whom you are a values and vision match so you can walk the journey together, holding each other accountable, and encouraging each other along the way. Together, they are accomplishing more than they could each accomplish individually. We all need an inner circle of strong supporters.

 

Take the time today to reflect, reset and restart to maximize and reach your own potential.

Deb Ingino Headshot copy

Deb Ingino is a Strength Strategist, Speaker and Mentor. She helps individuals and organizations to discover, leverage and lead with their strengths – www.StrengthLeaderMentor.com