Wasting Potential?
- Joshua U.
- Jun 23
- 8 min read
Updated: Jun 25
po·ten·tial
(adj) having or showing the capacity to become or develop into something in the future
(n) latent qualities or abilities that may be developed and lead to future success or usefulness
Bring into focus your favorite celebrity, and consider how much had to go right for them to make it to where they are today. All the awards they've won, all the accomplishments they've amassed, all the millions upon millions of dollars they've made.
What exactly determines who reaches that level of success? First and foremost, you've got to be incredibly skilled at/in something. I'm a believer that we all have a God-given gift of talent of some kind.
Secondly, there's got to be a great work ethic accompanying that talent. Personally, whenever I hear the words "work ethic," the first person that comes to mind is the late professional basketball legend, Kobe Bryant.
Bryant had special athletic talent. He grew to 6'6" tall, had great core strength, possessed explosive quickness and could absolutely jump out the gym on the way to a insane collection of highlight dunks during his 20-year NBA career. But all of those physical traits weren't what vaulted him up to success and superstardom.
If you're familiar with Bryant's career and legacy, you're likely also familiar with the term "Mamba mentality."
“Mamba mentality is all about focusing on the process and trusting in the hard work when it matters most... It’s the ultimate mantra for the competitive spirit. It started just as a hashtag that came to me one day, and it’s grown into something athletes -- and even non-athletes -- embrace as a mindset.” -- Bryant during a 2018 interview with the Amazon Book Review. [1]
Mamba mentality is known as possessing the will to push oneself to the absolute limit of their ability. In other words, it's all about maximizing one's potential. Bryant, as well as the aforementioned Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, are two prime examples of people who have embodied this mentality throughout their extremely successful careers.
I recall a conversation that I had with a close friend a few months ago; we discussed the pros and cons of having a fierce work ethic.
work eth·ic
(n) the way that someone feels about the importance of work, usually the belief that it is important to work hard
Naturally, these two superstar celebrities came up as both Kobe and Beyoncé were/are very much known for having legendary work ethics -- work ethics that border on psychopathic.
My friend credited their relentless dedication to excellence to being Virgos, who she said are known for their perfectionist traits, attention to detail, and high standards. She's an "astronomy girlie," as they say.
While I personally can't speak to any of that, I can focus on the facts to paint a clearer picture.
When I watched Beyoncé's "Homecoming" Netflix documentary in 2019, my main takeaway was her great -- you guessed it -- work ethic, and just how much she obsesses over the details.
"And It doesn’t matter how many months we’ve done it, how many times we’ve done it, there are notes every time because there’s always something that we can improve upon." — Beyoncé, 'Homecoming: A Film by Beyoncé (2019)
As for Kobe, he was notorious for working himself to the point of exhaustion -- or until exhaustion simply didn't exist anymore for him. If Bryant's Lakers suffered a loss, you would commonly see the Hall-of-Famer stay on the court hours after the game concluded, taking anywhere from 800-1,300 practice shots before leaving. [2]
So What About Us; The Common People?
I've been thinking a lot about this subject as it pertains to my personal life, and I made the decision to write about it because I know it's an extremely relatable topic as it pertains to mental health.
The Recess Bell's main mission is to inspire creativity in others. Part of the process in creation is discovering what we're proficient at -- our talent. Once that's discovered, it's time to put in the work. But that's easier said than done.
Sometimes we can hit a wall -- a creative block. Other times, the motivation to work just isn't there. There's the matter of impostor syndrome, too -- which brings feelings of unworthiness and self-doubt. And also, as is covered on The Healing Journey, we can develop fear and apprehension about putting ourselves (and our work) back out there after we suffer mental & emotional trauma.
That's one side of the coin: feeling like we're not doing enough.
The other side of that coin: Doing too much to an unhealthy point.
“There were days that I thought, you know, I’d never be the same. I’d never be the same physically, my strength and endurance would never be the same...In the beginning it was so many muscle spasms. Just, internally, my body was not connected. My mind was not there. My mind wanted to be with my children. What people don’t see is the sacrifice. I would dance, and go off to the trailer, and breast-feed the babies, and the days I could, I would bring the children.” - Beyoncé
“I did a lot of timed work on the track where I would incrementally decrease the amount of time between each set until, after a full off-season, my recovery time would be almost nil.” - Kobe Bryant
Was it just that their standards were insanely high because they're perfectionists? Or did they have an underlying fear of not maximizing themselves to their fullest potential that drove them to debility?
Well, the answer is: both.
per·fec·tion·ism
(n) a disposition to regard anything short of perfection as unacceptable
You see, perfectionism is closely tied to a fear of failure -- or in other words for this piece's sake, not realizing one's potential. Dr. Jan Philamon of the Australian Psychological Society explains this relationship:
"In its more negative form, however, perfectionism can have very disturbing and unhealthy consequences. People holding such views, fear imperfection and believe that people will not like them or accept them unless they are perfect. Unhealthy perfectionists feel a failure if they don’t reach their goals, or if they make mistakes. They focus heavily on their mistakes and take them as a sign of personal defects, which negatively impacts on their self-esteem." [3]
The fear of not ever meeting our fullest potential, or even worse -- going through a whole bulk of our lives and feeling like we've already wasted a huge amount of potential -- can be disappointing beyond measure. It can also lead to some disturbing tendencies and mindsets, as Dr. Philamon noted above.
It's also easy for most people to glamorize overwork when it comes to celebrities like Beyoncé and Kobe Bryant. Global superstars like that tend to get heavily idolized. It's important to remember though: healthy habits are healthy habits and dangerous habits are dangerous habits. Full stop. Regardless of who's practicing them or what their level of celebrity is.
The Perfectionist Problem
I just recently finished a rewatch of one of my favorite shows of all-time, Breaking Bad. The show's anti-hero, Walter White, began the show as an extremely overqualified high school chemistry teacher who works a second job at a car wash to make ends meet but still struggles to provide for his family. In addition to those unfortunate career circumstances, White was also diagnosed with an advanced form of lung cancer, which exacerbates his feelings of lifelong inadequacy.
In an effort to make money for his family before his time runs out, he begins cooking methamphetamine, and discovers that he's excellent at it. He's excellent at it because his drive to become more than what he was in his eyes -- a failure -- pushes him to produce the best quality meth in his region. As the show goes on, his perfectionism, pride and hubris slowly but surely destroys his family, destroys countless people's lives, and eventually results in his own death, illustrating just how toxic his mindset was.
In the creative realm, the fear of not maximizing oneself can lead to the creation of some pretty amazing and substantial things. If you really think hard about it, you'll realize that much of the world's greatest artwork stems from a creator that knew their work had special potential and thus worked their hardest to transform that potential into reality.
But, as we've already covered: the fear of not maximizing potential can lead to the crippling trait of perfectionism. Perfectionism is a cycle of great peaks and crippling valleys, mentally. A constant oscillation between high self-esteem and low self-esteem. A see-saw with one end consisting of the fiery resolve to achieve great things and the other end containing intense periods of procrastination. Additionally; you can become just a flat-out annoying person to be around and tolerate.
This wildly-spinning cycle [4] is illustrated below:
As a creative that's struggled with my own mental health -- ESPECIALLY as it pertains to this matter -- the best advice I've ever received when it comes to pushing through my negative perfectionist traits to get my work done is this: "just do it."
Profound, right? Yes, the famed 'Nike' motto is also the best piece of advice I've ever received. Let's really break it down, though. When the procrastination side of perfectionism kicks in and it keeps you from doing what you need to do, what are the prevailing thoughts and emotions? They might sound something like these:
"This isn't good enough."
"This is going to get laughed at."
"People are going to think this is weird."
Most of the world's greatest creations and most adored ideas started off getting laughed at, ridiculed, and dismissed initially. The fear of having that happen is significant, no doubt. But the only way to overcome that is not to procrastinate and be avoidant towards your next work. That would be just staying in the cycle. The way to overcome this fear is to push through. That's much easier said than done, obviously. To get to the point of pushing through without hesitation or trepidation, it requires quite the shift in perspective.
As is typically the case with any mental health condition, a shift in mindset can make a world of positive difference and can drastically course-correct one's life. I say this phrase all the time, but self-awareness is truly a superpower. Texas-based LCSW-S Jason Drake [5] supports this notion, as he says that in order to overcome & manage perfectionism, you need to become aware of your thoughts & behaviors around your perfectionism. [6]
“Once you identify the thoughts, themes, and behaviors, then you can start to change them.” - Jason Drake, LCSW-S, Katy, Texas
Other mental health professionals bring additional solutions to the table, such as creating achievable goals, practicing self-compassion, and actively challenging negative thoughts when they arrive. [7]
To wrap up; the fear of wasting and not maximizing potential can be scary for most and absolutely frightening for a perfectionist. It's a double-edged sword in the way that this fear can catapult us into greatness or cascade us down into dysfunction.
If self-awareness is the best superpower to possess in the world of mental health, then the ability to find balance in most situations isn't too far behind. In the context of this discussion, it's absolutely paramount. Striving for excellence shouldn't be something that should be shied away from. The balance that needs to be found here? Shooting for that greatness without sacrificing your mental health.
[1] Tailor, Leena. “Kobe Bryant Day: What “Mamba Mentality” Meant in His Own Words.” Entertainment Tonight, 24 Aug. 2020, www.etonline.com/kobe-bryant-day-what-mamba-mentality-meant-in-his-own-words-140424.
[2] Dubash, Arish. “8 Ways to Immortalize Kobe Bryant’s Work Ethic into Your Daily Life.” Medium, 10 Feb. 2020, medium.com/@arishdubash/8-ways-to-immortalize-kobe-bryants-work-ethic-into-your-daily-life-f22c570748a9.
[3] Philamon, Jan. “Anxiety, Perfectionism and Fear of Failure - Dr Jan Philamon Psychologist Brisbane | M1 Psychology.” M1 Psychology, m1psychology.com/anxiety-perfectionism-and-the-fear-of-failure/.
[4] Coote, Aleisha. “The Coaching Tools Shop.” The Coaching Tools Shop, 22 Jan. 2024, www.coachingtoolsshop.com/insights/are-you-stuck-in-a-cycle-of-perfectionism.
[5] “Neurofeedback for Men | Katy Counseling for Men | Katy, TX 77494.” Katy Counseling Men, 2019, www.katycounselingformen.com/jason-drake-lcsws-bcn-board-certified-neurofeedback-katy-tx. Accessed 23 June 2025.
[6] Cox, Janelle. “7 Ways to Cope with Perfectionism.” Psych Central, 11 May 2009, psychcentral.com/health/steps-to-conquer-perfectionism#tips-to-cope.
Medically reviewed by Marney A. White, PhD, MS, Psychology.
[7] Hunt, Ashlee. “Maple Canyon Therapy Services.” Maple Canyon Therapy Services, 29 June 2023, www.maplecanyontherapy.com/blog/perfectionism-guide.
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