Open your mindset fearlessly

From a closed to an open mindset. Be Fearless!

Photo by JOSHUA COLEMAN on Unsplash

Below my potential

I used to believe that I am living below my potential for as long as I can think.

I was doing great in school and in sports, and I was having an easy time connecting with people as well. Continuously, I received signals from my surrounding that I was being special and a high achiever. At the same time, I never felt being seen or acknowledged for who I truly was without those achievements. Also, things that came effortless to me sometimes were seen as big achievements, which was confusing and frustrating at the same time.

To compensate, I felt the need to push for more, achieve better and bigger things and never appreciated what I already had.

I kept this mindset far into my adulthood. Until recently, I found myself striving for "success", striving for bigger, better, faster, stronger. I used to think "I could do so much better, I suck".

What's so interesting about this thought is that I did not think in concrete terms. I did not set out measured goals like "I want to double my client base" or "I want to be able to speak one more language". My thought was very vague - "I could do so much more"!

Potential is infinite

Today, I realize that comparing myself to some vague potential does not serve me.

The truth is, there are countless things I can do at any point in time. There are countless aspects of myself and my life that I can improve on. However, I can only pick one of them at a given time. There likely is no point at which I will be able to say "I reached my potential. Now, I'm done". There is potential for endless expansion and growth.

I limited myself by the belief that I am living below my potential. This stems from a closed mindset that puts me in a victim position, always creating dissatisfaction by focusing on what I do not have, what I did not achieve.

An open mindset towards growth

Instead, I switched my focus on how amazing it is that there are endless possibilities - and I want to explore them! I follow an approach that represents an open mindset instead.

1. Self-assessment
2. Developing my taste
3. Taking action

Assessing myself honestly

A crucial first step in growth is to localize myself, get to know myself. Where do I stand today?

This can be done across all aspects of myself and life - professionally, personally, spiritually, etc. This step is fairly objective - it's like a collection of all the data points about me.

Apart from localizing where I am today, I can also think about the direction I'm headed to (1st derivative) or even whether there is any change of my direction (2nd derivative).

Developing my taste authentically

Based on the initial self-assessment, I can start identifying aspects that are not in my favor.

Say, I am not happy with my professional situation. Or, there is an aspect of my personality that I am not happy with. This part is highly subjective and up to my own taste and judgement. Essentially, this step is a decision about who the person is I want to become, and is fueled by my authentic self.

Again, I can take into account the 1st and 2nd derivative. If I am not happy with my professional situation, but I am already taking steps into a "positive" direction - check! However, if instead there is no foreseeable change coming up - I identified a possible aspect for growth!

Taking action self-responsibly

The initial two steps rewarded me with an assessment of my current state and an idea of where I want to move towards. I enter the final step by living self-responsibly and honestly to myself: I take action to change myself or my circumstances towards the version I prefer. This step is all about creation!

By following my intuition and sending impulses out into the world, I make an impact and see things unfold. I express myself authentically and detach myself from any one outcome. I lean back, putting my trust into myself and the universe that what I create will be beautiful in its own right.

My journey through life

With the above framework in mind, I regard my journey through life as going through multiple iterations of these steps. Over time, I will fine-tune my senses and increase my self-awareness, as well as developing a more accurate and nuanced taste for the person I want to become. Finally, I embrace my self-responsiblity to create impactful actions fearlessly.

Taking on an open mindset towards myself and the world allows me to experience life with gratitude, joy and authenticity. I am excited for what is yet to come! 🌠