Hatch, Leap, Soar. Latoyia Dennis

to take a chance. In the past I had raised money and resources for events, and I was even awarded for raising the most money for a Multiple Sclerosis Bike Ride while working a full-time job. But taking on a full-time development job, where I was responsible for raising $1.5 million a year, was indeed a leap and a true act of faith.

      Your commitment to asking, seeking, and trusting the lead of your higher power will become the demonstration of your faith. You may not be a person of faith, so let me put it to you this way: when you have faith no matter what happens, you will not fail. Why? Because having faith means that you’ve still won. You trusted yourself enough to try, and, in that exercise, you learned something about who you are.

      Hatching to flee from a redundant and mundane lifestyle is an innate desire. Deep down inside each of us is the overwhelming need to use our gifts, talents, and abilities to do something extraordinary. Just think—your actions may lead to personal profits or growth or add value to the world in which you live. A unique and full-circle sense of completeness may emerge when you use what is inside of you to uplift or help others who have not yet been able to hatch themselves.

      Hatching with the hope of fulfillment is easier to understand than saying, “I broke through the ceiling” because I was unfulfilled in my previous environment, career, or life. Seeking fulfillment is a journey to reconcile your outer life with an inner understanding of how to reach your full potential. You should use your inner powers on purpose. It is like having a deep, internal itch that must be scratched! Fulfillment is experienced when you can look at your work and know that it mattered. It is encountered when you are able to observe the full and final process of what you strived for finally achieved.

      The Purpose Driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For?, a book written by Pastor Rick Warren, became a popular banner, leading individuals to seek out their own purpose in a deep and meaningful way. Rick is often called “America’s most influential spiritual leader.” This best-selling book in the Religion and Spirituality category has helped millions of readers examine how to achieve a place in life that was inspired and live according to what was purposeful.

      How do you find and follow the clues to find purpose? Listen to your inner voice that is urging you to spread out and grow. Move toward the ideas that motivate and inspire you. Take a step beyond your comfy, complacent space, and hatch into a place that requires more of you. Flourish into the next and best version of yourself, again and again.

      You will find that your journey is constant and ever-evolving, moving into varying levels of self-encouragement, such as saying to yourself, I should do this. I can do this! You will learn how to confidently do what you were created to do and fulfill your purpose. Sounds exciting, does it not?

      The flip side of fulfillment is that it is never just about you. When you begin to fulfill your purpose, it also becomes an answer to the need of another. Your new business or nonprofit idea will provide a solution to a problem that you were most driven by and passionate about. The way you are evolving as a student, leader, spouse, parent, and more will ultimately benefit the lives of those who you are connected to. When you examine yourself and conclude that you have used your skills and abilities unselfishly for the benefit of others, you will experience what it means to be fulfilled!

      Who were you created to be? How will you hatch and begin your process of becoming? I personally have decided that I will not walk in the shadow of what I do best. I will not abandon who I am purposed to become. I invite you to join me on this journey by reviewing the following:

      •Review your current role in life and ask yourself the question, Is this who I was created to be?

      •Using your new, fresh perspective, write down three actions that you will take to begin your process of becoming.

      Relax and relieve yourself of the pressure and anxiety of perfection or having arrived, and allow yourself to simply hatch and become. I may make it sound easy, and, trust me, it truly is. Honestly speaking, for most of my life, I made things way too hard for myself. I hindered my own ability to fully become because I was way too busy trying, and most times, pretending to be perfect. But sooner or later you will realize, as I did, that becoming is an inward journey. This process of self-discovery entails learning new insights about yourself that will eventually help you define who you want to be. Becoming is a process of self-development: working and taking the steps to transform yourself. Finally, to become is a process of self-acceptance, which is loving the person you are right now, even if you never change. Only then will you gain the power to hatch and become.

      By giving yourself permission to discover your true self and align your life’s journey around your core beliefs, values, and perspectives, you will uncover the things that will bring you total fulfillment.

Chapter Three

      Your Potential

      “We’ll never know our full potential unless we push ourselves to find it.”

      —Travis Rice

      Have you ever looked at a person and said, “Man, they sure have a lot of potential?” What did you mean? What did you see in that individual? Did you catch a glimpse of what he or she could achieve or how well they could accomplish a specific task with just a little effort?

      I am convinced that the potential to be and to do more exists inside each and every one of us. As you commit to doing what it takes to obtain success, internally or externally, you also commit to doing what is necessary to maximize your potential.

      As its definition states, the word potential means untapped qualities that may be developed and lead to future success. The question then becomes, Why are those qualities untapped? The easy answer is that your own qualities lie deep inside you, unknown or undiscovered. But that may be only part of the equation. The other part rests in your willingness to push yourself to find what lies deep within. I know firsthand that we all receive clues and urges to tap into what is already inside of each of us. The ability to do more is buried within.

      I have personally seen those clues come in the form of passion about a certain matter, a unique way of accomplishing tasks or reaching people, and a desire to learn about a particular subject matter. Often, your interests or passions may not be in the more comfortable areas where you work, serve, or perform. However, if you do not put yourself in vulnerable or uncomfortable situations, you will never know exactly how much potential resides within you. Each of us has been uniquely made with purpose. You have been equipped to reach great levels of fulfillment. If you take a moment to stretch and push yourself to new limits, you will find the latent potential hidden deep inside.

      When I was a little girl, my grandmother would often tell me she believed in me and that I could achieve whatever I put my mind to. If I worked hard, I could make it happen. She did not have one doubt because she saw the potential that I had inside. That’s why I can tell that you were created for greatness.

      Let’s face it…looking inside and seeing your greatness within is often difficult. It was for me. Not only are we our own worst critics, there will always be certain people who will try to crush us with their words. You’re not good enough. You will never amount to anything. Those negative voices can often become ingrained in our beliefs, cloud our vision, and make us doubt ourselves. Words have power. They can cut deep, or they can heal and empower. The words we choose when speaking to ourselves and others can make all the difference in the world.