How far you grow is up to you

"When you try to achieve your life's goals, there is only one limit. That is the limit you set for yourself." Denis Waitley (Thinker)

If your image of the future is limited and low, it is unlikely that you will grow beyond that.

Try to think that you have more potential so that you do not set limits within yourself.

The key is to broaden your perspective so that you do not set your own potential too low, but don't you wonder just how far human ability can actually grow?

For example, looking at the performance and records of athletes, you can clearly see what humans are capable of when they accumulate effort and experience.

World records are generally meant to be broken eventually.

Also, even if it's not sports, when you think you're done for, you're often not, or rather, you're surprisingly still surviving.

Even when you think you can't endure something or that you can't do it, you surprisingly end up enduring it or getting it done.

Looking at history, humanity has survived great tragedies, disasters, economic downturns, and wars.

I think humans are much stronger creatures than we think we are, and we just go about our daily lives without knowing it.

When you think about it that way, there is no such thing as being hopeless, and what limits your ability is ultimately your own mindset.

If you think you've reached your limit, it becomes your limit, but if you don't think about limits (or don't have the luxury of thinking about them), they become irrelevant.

In other words, rather than thinking that you are done for, it becomes important to convince yourself that you should be stronger and capable of more.

If you don't pursue your own unique potential, you won't grow, so it's a good idea to think about where your own unique potential for growth lies.

It's not that you lack talent, but rather that you haven't developed it, and everyone has potential; therefore, I want to develop my own creativity by practicing creating various things at all times.

Come to think of it, it has become quite well known that we only use a small part of our brains.

Taking sports as an example, no one is strong or fast from the very beginning.

Of course, there are things like what you are born with or the influence of your parents, but without the individual's daily training and effort on top of that, results will not follow.

Because what you do on a daily basis is different, the results are different, and whether or not you set your own limits while doing it must also have an effect.

This applies not only to sports, but also to knowledge and work ability.

Even for those around you who seem incredibly capable, it is unlikely they were able to do everything from the very beginning.

While some people are naturally resilient to stress from the start, others become stronger through training, and the same applies to positive thinking and habits.

If you think you cannot do something or that you are no good, that is where it ends, but if you believe there is more beyond that, a path forward will open up.

What is something you have recently thought you could not do?

Why not reconsider whether it is truly impossible?

You might find that it is not actually impossible; I believe the one who decided it was impossible was not anyone else, but yourself.

The author Saburo Shiroyama once said, 'While stretching to broaden your perspective, you might actually grow taller. That is the interesting part of life.' By challenging yourself beyond the range where you feel safe and comfortable, you can grow one step further.

That delicate line is likely where the point of accelerated growth lies, isn't it?

Why not try expanding your boundaries to a range you think might be a bit too much?

Instead of thinking, 'I am no good for setting limits on myself' (as that will only make you feel down again), try thinking that if you are the one setting the limits, you can simply set them higher.

It is not that you are bad for setting limits, but by realizing that if you can set them yourself, you can also choose them yourself, you will find the strength to move forward.

It is also a good idea to try doing something that tests your abilities.

Taking my own example, I think that is what marathons and triathlons mean to me.

By trying things without thinking about limits, if you can realize what you are capable of, you can reaffirm that you can indeed do it, which is fun and leads to confidence.

You, too, should try something—anything—to realize the potential of your own abilities.