---
title: "Career Tips Over Coffee: Realizing Our Potential"
description: Last week I attended the Global Leadership Summit, which once again was an amazing experience with incredible and inspiring leaders. The Summit is an annual event for me as I invest in my own leadersh
image: https://www.allyenergy.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Career_Tips_Over_Coffee_Realizing_Our_Potential-p2s1oearj1g4xervmn5vm72oqb93vogdn1bmcy9oy0.png
---
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# Career Tips Over Coffee: Realizing Our Potential
Written by:
[Susan Hodge](https://www.allyenergy.com/blog/author/susanhodge)
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Last week I attended the Global Leadership Summit, which once again was an amazing experience with incredible and inspiring leaders. The Summit is an annual event for me as I invest in my own leadership development. One of the speakers was Erwin McManus, a designer, businessman, and pastor who always leaves me reflecting on life.
McManus’s message was about fear. He believes that we have a fear in us that we’ll live and die without every realizing our full potential. Interesting thought…what is it that holds us back from realizing our full potential?
1. **A limited view of ourself?** How much time do you invest in telling yourself why things can’t happen rather than why they can.
2. **Surrounded by discouragers?** Who we spend time with impacts our attitudes. Surround yourself with encouragers, not discouragers.
3. **Unaware of the possibilities?** Sometimes we just don’t know what is out there. Or perhaps we discount our qualifications before we try. (See number 1 above.) Get out there and explore. Consider that impossible might just be possible. Dream big.
4. **Fear.** This is the big one. Fear often isn’t obvious. Fear chips away at us silently. It may show up as worry. It may show up as warnings. Or it may be silently running as negativity in the shadows of your mind. We overcome fear by walking through it. How often have you tried something and afterwards thought, “Now that wasn’t so bad after all.”
## **The bottom line is this. We realize our potential by taking action. One step at a time.**
If you’d like to take action for your career, check out my upcoming workshop **Defining Your Next Career Step** which starts August 29. [https://www.womenleadingtogether.com/events/virtual-workshop-defining-your-career-next-step-2018-08-30/](https://www.womenleadingtogether.com/events/virtual-workshop-defining-your-career-next-step-2018-08-30/)
## [Susan Hodge](https://www.allyenergy.com/blog/author/susanhodge)
Susan provides workshops and individual coaching focused on helping women advance their careers, get clear about their distinct value, and create fulfilling work and personal lives.
-
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[.png) Grit Awards, GRIT Woodside Energy CEO Meg O’Neill Honored with the 2025 Lifetime Achievement GRIT Award ALLY Energy](https://www.allyenergy.com/blog/2025-grit-awards-lifetime-achievement-award-winners-announced)
[ Inspiration, Leadership C-Suite Series: Courageous Leadership with Deane Ilukowicz Katie Mehnert](https://www.allyenergy.com/blog/courageous-leadership-the-c-suite-series-with-deane-ilukowicz)
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