Two Questions to Close the Greatness Gap

“Musicians must make music, artists must paint, poets must write if they are to be ultimately at peace with themselves. What human beings can be, they must be. They must be true to their own nature. This need we may call self-actualization… It refers to man’s desire for self-fulfillment, namely to the tendency for him to become actually in what he is potentially: to become everything one is capable of becoming.” - Abraham Maslow

Throughout life, we will constantly be confronted with unfavorable encounters, negative energy, and necessary evils. In moments like these, I’ve discovered two questions that enable me to remain in integrity, at peace, full of purpose and joy, and in pursuit of greatness. They are:

1) What is the the one thing that if I stopped doing right now, would have the greatest positive impact on my life?

2) What is the one thing that if I started doing right now, would have the great positive impact on my life?

Mastering the daily practice of letting go of what no longer serves us and recommitting to what does is what separates those who exist at their highest potential and those who are striving to get there.

Our source of anxiety and unhappiness exists at the gap between what we’re capable of and what we’re actually doing. Therefore, our greatest opportunity in life is to ardently, courageously, and playfully close that gap—to practice and pursue greatness. The faster we do more of what we’re meant to do and less of what we’re not, the quicker we accelerate toward our highest potential.

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Thanks to Danny, Bear, and Phil for inspiring this post and Vivek for reading the draft.