Stephen Guise - The Magic of Momentum: Escape Any Rut. Build Winning Streaks. Use Forward Motion to Change the Trajectory of Your Life.

Potential isn't a number or a single, set thing that each of us has. Rather, potential describes what you could be in a specific area if you applied yourself correctly. But while potential is supposed to be a projection of a distant but attainable future, in reality, potential is only known shortly before it's realized.

Seeing your potential is like driving in fog. From the right angle or based on other things you've seen, maybe you catch a glimpse of what's further ahead or correctly guess what's there, but, effectively, you can only see maybe one or two increments beyond your current reach.

Who is most likely to see their potential to become a billionaire? Multi-millionaires, because they are the closest people to that elite level of financial success. Those without a million dollars naturally won't consider their potential to earn a billion dollars, with so many milestones between here and there. And yet, every billionaire at one point had less than one million dollars. People who have the potential for a billion dollars rarely see that potential until they are well on their way.

This is the nature of life. We can't typically see our highest potential until we are a relatively small number of visible steps away from it.

Of course there will be people who say they're going to be president or make a billion dollars, even if they got a C in political science and have a negative net worth. These people are rare and, frankly, delusional. Their aspirations are unreasonable from a mathematical and practical perspective.

Mathematically speaking, the odds of becoming president or a billionaire are each hundreds of millions to one. If you are already a senator, however, your presidential dream odds skyrocket to maybe 1,000 to one. This is why we laugh at a kid saying he wants to be president but take seriously a senator saying the same thing. One of them has proven political potential and isn't too far from the highest level.

Practically speaking, it doesn't make sense to aim for president or a billion dollars before you aim for the necessary preceding steps. To make a billion dollars, you must first make one hundred million dollars; before that, one million dollars; before that, $100,000. As for where you'll ultimately peak, that depends on too many factors to calculate, especially because, as you earn more, your potential to earn more increases.

This is not to crush anyone's dreams or tell people what they can't do, it's to point out the progressive nature of discovering your potential.

Potential isn't just about how high you reach; it's about what you've proven able to do and what you can leverage. It's far more valuable to prove yourself able to earn (and manage) $1 million than to actually have $1 million. The money itself can go away! It can get stolen, spent, or consumed by medical bills. Mike Tyson earned $300 million from boxing, then went bankrupt because he couldn't manage his finances. Others with a small salary may manage it so well that they become wealthy.

What's true of politics and finance is true of every aspect of life: Achievement is more about who you become and the assets you can leverage than any given outcome.