Working with Self

I call it the open secrets of enhancing human potential because deep inside every one of us we know what it takes to be a human being of highest potential. The best part is we all want to be that admirable human being. The question is what comes between the intent and action of becoming a human being of highest potential. And that is a fair question.

This question kept me sleepless for almost a decade. I don't know if I have found the perfect answer but I have evidence that my potential has improved exponentially by doing whatever I have figured out. That gave me peace. Hopefully it helps you too.

The aim of the series is to give you a sneak peak into both the problem and the solution. It is not a problem-problem but understanding the nature of the system gives a possibility to solve for the delta. This is why we say problem solving begins when we start understanding the problem area well.

Now that you understand the complex amalgamation of default human nature, you may be able to guess what not to do for sure. That is a great first step.

As a default human, when you live the default human way, you get a default human life. And that is ok if that is what you want to achieve in this life. No pressure.

Read along if you want to enhance your current potential and become an admirable human being that you yourself will pat on your back.

Default

• Fear of failure and fear of unknown is real.
• Ambiguity and big audacious goals are hard on us.
• As pleasure seeking, pain avoiding machines, discomfort and distress is hard on us.
• Meaning and purpose is vital to feel complete.
• It is human to guard reputation and seek validation & approval from others (especially from the ones it is hard to get).
• We love high status and attention.
• We are control freaks.
• We are emotional beings first and that makes us irrational.
• We love belonging and we long for human connect.
• We are adaptable by nature.
• We don't have to do it all. We can depend on our community.
• We hate anything that sucks our energy.
• Even if the person is super close to you, you cannot read their mind and they cannot read yours either.
• We overestimate ourselves.
• We are fickle but we don't like the fickleness from others when displayed.
• Mortality scares us. We age and we will die one day.

Enhancing Maximum Potential

• Have empathy for the nature of the beast. Understanding who we are and what we are afraid of, helps us to solve for it.
• Long term audacious goals are hard. Break it down in to smaller bets and work towards increasing probability of success in every bet you take in life. Increase certainty and predictability in your life this way.
• Without discomfort there is no growth. Pain is inevitable in a growth path. When you know this suffering is optional.
• Seek validation and approval from yourself first as you know yourself far better than others. Be your judge. Innately you will set a high bar for yourself. As a side effect you will look super human to others.
• Under estimate yourself. Enhance your conscientiousness trait. Do well all that you do. When your expectations are low and you keep exceeding expectations on a regular basis, you tend you be happier.
• Remember you can only control your locus. You can't control someone else's locus. You can only influence them.
• Days are long and decades are short. While we are trying to garner success every day, the compounding is visible only after a long term. So set some long term goals and focus on the short term activities and results.
• Care about your life. No one else will do it for you. Do things that grow you exponentially. Increase your status. Leverage all that you can (people/capital/media/code/time).
• Remember you are mortal and let that inspire you to make the most of Parkinson's law.
• What gets measured gets improved. Measure your betterment everyday. A simple 5 point likert scale (a 5 star rating) is enough to measure. The intent is to move the needle towards max potential. Use the scale as a compass and adjust your course accordingly.
• Two Gs (giving & gratitude) helps you go beyond your default-ness by default. Go overboard.
• The best way to learn is to reflect. The best way to reflect is to do. The best form of doing is a sprint way of doing for a human. So do - reflect - learn everyday.

and that is all 🤪

For tomorrow, let's focus on how to work with other human beings.

🥂 to max potentail!