Most often the invitation to “unlock your potential” is more about selling some new knowledge than about unlocking potential. It doesn’t mean that those trying to sell you something don’t have something useful or interesting to sell, nor does it mean that it can’t unlock potential.

What I’m noticing about such headlines is that they reach out to anxieties.

Depending on how distracted I’m or how much attention I have available in the moment, I’ll find myself becoming aware of the impact of the headline or not. If anxieties appear, I’ll find myself reacting to a few of them. There seems to be the possibility that I’m missing out on an opportunity, maybe even the one I’ve unconsciously been looking out for. Other possibilities are that I’ve not developed all of my potential and thus might not be enough for what is needed nowadays, or that I’m not attentive enough to whatever I should know.

It always takes a moment for my emotional reactions to become noticeable and then to become aware of the distraction they create. However, when I notice it, there is a choice that becomes available, and I can decide if I’m subject to a distraction or important information.

That’s exactly the moment making my full potential available: I find myself knowing and accessing what is relevant to me.