12 Ways You're Not Living Up To Your Potential

The world is full of people who are unhappy with their life. They feel like they're not living up to their potential and it's hard for them to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Just ask yourself what are you doing with your life? What is the meaning of your existence? These questions may seem like they're only relevant to philosophy majors, but they're actually something that you should be asking yourself. You deserve more than this - don't settle for mediocrity. Here are 12 ways you can start living up to your potential today.

1.  You don't know what you want

One of the biggest reasons why people are unhappy with their life is because they don't know what they want. They live their lives without any goals or aspirations. There's no point in doing this because it makes every decision harder to make and wastes time that could be spent working towards something worthwhile. Instead, you should sit down and figure out what your goals are - both short term and long term. Once you have a goal, everything else will fall into place.

2.  Sitting around wasting time

You probably waste most of your day sitting around watching TV or staring at your computer screen mindlessly browsing the web (I'm guilty of this too so don't feel bad). But if you want to start living up to your potential, you should spend as much time as possible reading and learning. This lets you stay updated on what's going on in the world and it also opens your mind up to new ideas that could help you grow as a person.

3.  Procrastinating

Not doing your work or putting things off until later is just laziness and it holds you back from other opportunities that might be available to you right now. Do yourself a favor and just get your stuff done before anyone even needs it - this will save you a lot of frustration down the road. If there are deadlines for projects, however, don't try to do everything at the last minute because this will make things worse instead of better.

4.  You're not putting in the work

It's not good enough to just get by with your schooling or your work - you have to actually try and do well. If you don't, then you are holding yourself back from being successful. Don't be afraid of others judging you for trying hard because it will only make them more jealous when they see how far ahead of them you are.

5.  Not taking on any challenges

We've all heard the saying "no risk, no reward" before but that couldn't be more true when it comes to life. If you want things to happen for yourself, then you need to start stepping outside of your comfort zone and put yourself in challenging situations. These experiences will build your character and teach you a lot about yourself.

6.  Working an uninspiring job

More often than not, this is the root of most people's problems. It's not so much that they have an uninspired job because it doesn't pay well or provide them with any fulfillment, but it's moreso because it keeps them from working towards something bigger and better in the future. If you feel like this describes your current situation at work, then you should talk to your boss about transferring to another department or branch - if possible.

7.  Not having any dreams or aspirations

This ties into number 1 on our list because people without any ambitions are usually unhappy due to their lack of direction in life. Every human needs to have dreams and aspirations because it gives them something to look forward to in life. It's also important because it pushes you towards working harder so that one day you can achieve what you've always wanted.

8.  Not using your natural talents

Everyone has different skills and abilities that they're good at - these are your natural talents. If you feel like you aren't reaching your full potential then maybe there's a talent that you're not using properly yet - something that could be used as an avenue for success down the road. For some people, this might be art while others might have a knack for business or technology - regardless of which direction, just find out what yours is and use it to your advantage.

9.  You only look out for number one

If you only care about yourself, then you are definitely not living up to your potential. This doesn't mean that you have to spend every waking moment caring for others, but it does mean that you should have some sort of big picture goal in mind. You don't want all your hard work and effort to go down the drain so remember that there's more to life than just taking care of yourself - be generous towards others too.

10.  Not being open minded enough

This also ties with number 7 on our list because if you aren't willing to try new things or keep an open mind, then how can you expect things to happen? No matter what new opportunities come up in front of you, make sure that you are willing to give them a try because even the ones that might seem stupid or like they don't make sense could end up being quite beneficial.

11.  You're not collecting knowledge everywhere you go

Again, this ties into #7 because life is all about experience and learning new things. If you want to live your life to its full potential then you need to learn as much as possible about yourself, others, and the world around you. You can't just limit yourself to one or two sources of information - instead, find out what's available to you and take advantage of it every chance that you get.

12.  Allowing fear to control your decisions

It's normal for people who are making big changes in their lives to feel nervous or afraid, but they shouldn't allow it to hold them back. If you've been dreaming about starting your own business or traveling the world for years but are hesitant because you're afraid of making mistakes then maybe it's time that you start living life on the edge a little bit more. You can't expect success without first putting yourself out there and facing possible failure head-on.