Reaching Your Potential CHAPTER 1

Making the most of yourself  Each day is a step toward what you choose  SELF-CONFIDENCE confident in personal abilities  Success and self-confidence go hand in hand  Sense of accomplishment  Building on those things that you have worked to achieve  Must have a positive approach to project

 Move toward Independence  Displaying a positive attitude and believing in yourself will lead to success  Even small successes can help you learn to believe in yourself and see self-worth

What’s Your Potential?  Potential the possibility of becoming more than they are right now.  Becoming all that you can be

Suggestions to reaching your potential  Check out your interests and abilities  Make a list  ask others for additional suggestions  Keep your efforts focused  Don’t get distracted along the way. Stay focused on the goal ahead  Be health-smart  Healthy and full of energy  Sleep, healthy diets, exercise, avoiding drugs and alcohol  Use your potential in positive ways

Resources impact potential  Resource  anything you use to help accomplish something  Human Resources  have to do with people  Material resources  Money, property, supplies, time and tools  Community Resources  help you enjoy life, improve skills, and solve problems  Examples Libraries, schools, churches, clinics, and parks  Natural Resources  air, water, soil, plants and minerals

Can you identify resources to achieve your goals/potential?

Make the most of your Resources  Expand your resources  Such as knowledge and skills  Get to know people in a variety of areas  Develop your own knowledge and resources to share with others

 Conserve your resources  Supply may be fixed so you need to use them sparingly  Plan for the future  Care for material resources  Substitute resources  Give in another way if one resource is short  Barter and trade system

 Share resources  Trading resources or loaning items to others  Sharing is beneficial for all involved Resourceful able to solve problems and succeed in life

The Importance of Goals  Goal something you plan to do, be, or have  Goals are many times personal  Provide direction and a sense of purpose Goals should be S.M.A.R.T and S.M.A.R.T.E.R

 Goals force you to think about what you want and help you to take necessary steps to attain your objectives  Road signs give you direction, keep you focused  If you set goals you are more likely to succeed instead someone else controlling your future

Personal Goals  Short Term Goals ca n be accomplished in the near future, a day or week  Medium Term Goals can be accomplished in 6 months to a year  Long Term Goals far reaching and take longer to achieve  Fixed Goals can only be met at a certain time, tied to a specific date  Flexible Goals no time limit  All types are important

 Short term goals can be part of reaching a long term goal  Setting more short term goals can make long term goals seem more attainable  You need to also draw a line between dreams and reality  Ok to have lofty goals but know that reality may have a different plan

Group Goals  People sharing a common goal, working together to achieve them  Sometimes the focus needs to be on common goals and not personal goals  When people pull together, they can create amazing things

Achieving your goals  Have to think about what is important to you  Make sure the goals you set reflect what you want  Commitment

Helpful guidelines  Keep your goals in mind  Create a mental picture  Write it down and post it where you can read it many times  Stay active with your goals  Most always be working toward goal  Key is Action, not wishful thinking  Be determined  Confidence, determination, enthusiasm  When you are handed a road block step back and restart another way

Establishing Priorities Prioritize decide which goals and activities are most important to you  Based on values, interests, skills and stage in life cycle  Gives direction in setting goals and managing resources

Needs and Wants  Needs are things that you must have to survive, such as food, clothing and shelter  Wants are things that you desire both that are not necessary or essential  Being able to tell the difference between needs and wants is essential to setting priorities

The Role of Values  Values are the beliefs and ideas that guide your life  Help you determine what is more important, less important and unimportant  Examples Good health, education,  Help to steer you toward what is right for you and away from activities that are not in your best interest

Differing Priorities  Different for each person  Ok to have some differences and common priorities

What are your Priorities right now?