In my last post(HERE), we took at look at what "current reality" is. Mine is in a place of being stuck. Stuck isn't a bad thing for some people, but to achieve the next part of our definition of success, being stuck is a bad thing.
So the next part of the quote, "Success is the difference between your current reality, and your potential.", is focused on potential. Potential is what you are capable of. If everything went the way you wanted, what could you accomplish, do, learn, etc.
We were taught when we were young to reach for the skies. There is no limit to what you can do, do what makes you happy! In our early twenties we realize this was a little far fetched of an idea. When the realities of adult responsibilities set in. Sometimes we get down on ourselves for how heavy these responsibilities feel, when you start your march into adulthood the weight of the responsibilities crush down any aspirations you once had of achieving true greatness.
I was interested in becoming at doctor at one point. I was not held back by brains or physically, it was the weight of the life I had started to create. Remember...I was achieving success in everyone's eyes. I was not going after this to impress anyone, but I thought I was definitely headed in the right direction. I had a well paying job, was in school, and as all of this was going on, I started building a stable life for myself. How could I move away and take on uncertainty with all of this safeness I had created. Rather than going after the unknown for a better life, I convinced myself I was satisfied, safe, and recoiled back inside of myself in fear of the unknown.
Fast forward a few years, I look around at my surroundings and realize that I really am not satisfied. Essentially living paycheck to paycheck, a couple thousand dollars at any given time in my bank accounts. I had more cushion at a younger age than most everyone around me, financially at least.
I felt stuck, like it was time to jump ship and make a move to a new place, a new place in my life, not my physical location.
I went back to school, still chasing the idea of of what success is in another persons eyes, most peoples eyes, at least most people around me. Once again feeling the rumbles of success with a new twinkle in my eye, I marched forward hard crashing through school like a hot blade through butter. School comes easy to me, I do not have to put as much effort into learning enough to get good grades, although in my opinion schools are not even close to what they should be. You can slide through college with a four year degree pretty easy, as long as you show up, do the homework, you can fail most tests and still get a degree, which is somewhat sad.
I finished the degree and looked hard for a new job. Doing everything in my power to start anew, still chasing the fabled dream of what success is. I began feeling doubt creep in, it seeped into my entire being, and before I realized, it had overtaken me. I hit my lowest point, not being able to learn programming quick enough, and could not find a job with either of my degrees.
I looked inward first, and assessed. I stopped blaming external forces, and started to take responsibility. Becoming a programmer was not in my cards. I know I could have done it if I continued, but the cost was just too high for me. It was in this time period of assessing that I realized I belong in business, and business is where I need to be.
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