Growing Our Human Potential

the journey of personal growth, self-discovery & enlightenment

“My life’s work and passion is empowering others to realize their true potential. I realized that in order to Master Life, you must Master Growth. I applied this to my own troubled past where I transformed despair into enlightenment, and now inspire & guide others toward a life of meaning, purpose, love, and joy.

The journey begins with Personal Growth—building self-esteem, resilience, and self-awareness to overcome challenges. It deepens with Self-Discovery—uncovering who we are and want to be, reshaping beliefs, and redefining success. For those seeking a deeper understanding of life and how we fit in, Enlightenment reveals life’s meaning along with our purpose, helping us self-actualize and live life on purpose.

Choose growth, Embrace your journey, and Unlock your full potential.

personal growth: victim no more

The catalyst for growth is pain & suffering. No Pain — No Gain. The ABC Model is a simple way of understanding the profoundness of growth. It is what lies deep in our subconscious, our Attitudes & Beliefs, that drive our Behaviors, and result in the Consequences we experience. Unhealthy beliefs that were formed in our formative years are the basis for many of our negative patterns we experience. We can either choose to blame others (Victim) or take that hard look within and change (Victor). We learn to take charge of our life!

Your Journey to Meaning, Purpose, Love & Joy Starts Here

self-discovery: A modern-day Vision Quest

I had healed most of the wounds and impact from a traumatic childhood which I talk about in my book, Discovering Michael: An Inspiration Guide to Personal Growth & Self-Discovery. Following my Personal Growth, deeper and more profound questions emerged. Who Am I? What Do I Stand For? What Does Happiness Mean to Me? Inspired by the movie, “Dances With Wolves”, and a calling to explore, I left Corporate America to backpack and volunteer around the world. I came face-to-face with situations that challenged my prior beliefs and ultimately resulted in learning about life itself and discovering Michael. My Favorite Talk.

“The greatest discovery in life is self-discovery. Until you find yourself, you will always be someone else. Become yourself.” Myles Munroe

enlightenment: Meaning of life

I discovered the Man in the Mirror, and once again I wanted to go deeper within. An insatiable curiosity for life developed, in search of the meaning of life and how I fit in. A life of pain and struggle had transformed itself into an amazing time of discovery, both of self and of the world around me. I spent countless hours reading books on all aspects of life and delving into deep philosophical discussions about religions, death & dying, and hearing the stories of others on similar journeys all around the globe. I volunteered in activities related to death (children’s oncology camp, EMT, hospice care). It was an encounter with a simple man and an amazing story that changed my perspective on life, and what lies beyond.

“Enlightenment is a destructive process. It has nothing to do with becoming better or being happier. Enlightenment is the crumbling away of untruth. It’s seeing through the facade of pretence. It’s the complete eradication of everything we imagined to be true.” Adyashanti

The journey: a framework

I begin my talks and workshops with this framework I developed based on years of research along with applying these techniques with myself. The framework is unique in that it provides a structure for those drawn to such a journey. Using a tree as an analogy to our life, hence the “tree of life”, our ability to achieve our full potential and achieve enlightenment comes from nurturing ourselves from the very seed from which we came from, and developing that seed into a flourishing, resilient, strong and beautiful person, no matter where our seed was planted or the storms the seed had to weather. As we progress through these stages, we venture deeper within. It is indeed the most amazing journey we can take, the journey of our life!

“Begin life as the seed, grow to become your full potential, then become the light to help other seeds grow!” Michael McGinnis

The podcast: revelations

Michael has teamed up with Transformational Network to launch his new podcast, “U Can Do It: Inspiring Growth – Igniting Potential”. Michael’s goal and purpose is to engage with YOU in open and candid conversation to guide and inspire you to be your full potential.Our focus is to guide and inspire you to master the most amazing journey you have – YOUR LIFE! It’s a journey of Personal & Spiritual Growth, Self-Discovery, and Enlightenment. Whether you seek to heal your past, transcend limiting beliefs, unlock your true potential, or uncover greater levels of meaning, understanding, purpose, love, and direction in your life, our show will engage you with open and candid conversations featuring the ingredients to becoming your full potential!

View recordings here

about michael: a life of growth and service to others

A brief introduction to the real Michael behind the curtain. Once I turned my life around, I was fortunate to have a stellar career. A diverse career ranging from starting my own business, an Executive Director for a NFP, a 4-year political appointment, and then settling in as a top educator, leader, and coach for the past 20 years. I worked for some great companies and had numerous achievements in my field. But it was the opportunity to volunteer and travel that really became my passion. I coined the phrase “volun-travel”. As I backpacked around the world, I discovered volunteer opportunities everywhere I went, which helped me to learn about the local culture and challenges people faced there. It was an epic adventure with a profound impact!!!!

“To Know and not yet To Do, Is Not Yet to Know” Lao Tzu

A favorite quote: a powerful purpose statement

“This is the true joy in life, being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one. Being a force of nature instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances, complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy. I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and as long as I live, it is my privilege to do for it what I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work, the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake. Life is no brief candle to me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.” George Bernard Shaw – Man and Superman

A primer to personal growth & self-discovery

Have 30 minutes? Listen to my introduction to Personal Growth & Self-Discovery.

Introduction
A Simple Question
What Is Your Motivation?
Life Is Difficult
Why Growth?
The Process

books | blogs | podcast | talks & more

Award Winning Book On Personal Growth & Self-Discovery

An Award Winning Book (Balboa Press, Amazon Books)
"Discoveirng Michael: An Inspirational Story and Guide to Personal Growth & Self-Discovery" is an inspirational guide for those interested in personal growth & self-discovery. It provides you with an understanding of the growth journey from the "person in the hot seat” perspective.

Kirkus Indie Review: "When milestones are hit or insights revealed, readers may feel it with him…An engaging, vulnerable and analytical writer…His greatest feat is bringing his past painfully full circle…A deeply sincere guide for survivors of past trauma in search of self-actualization."

Amazon 5-Star Reviews:

"An enlightening story about the tough realities one faces in life and great methods for how to best deal with them."

"I enjoyed how the author merges his life’s story as a novel with his personal growth path. It made me think and reflect a lot about my experiencies, life is challenging for everybody, happiness is a choice."

Personal Growth, Self-Discovery & Enlightenment for Leaders

"Leadership From The Inside Out: Building Your Leadership Foundation"
The most powerful learning from my years of research and facilitation on leadership development, along with my own aspiration to be a great leader, is that truly great leaders operate from a strong moral compass and personal foundation, which I refer to as the Leadership Foundation. This includes Self Awareness (your sails), strong Personal Beliefs & Values (your rudder) and a powerful understanding of their Purpose (your compass).I realized that there is a critical gap in how we currently develop our leaders.

Amazon 5-Star Review: "This book is a refreshing change from the conceptual to the practical. I found myself thinking about the “leaders” I have worked for and with over my career and how I felt and how productive I was in each situation. The author does a great job distilling down to the true essence of leadership. This book is a roadmap for personal discovery and a journey to a better leader with personal stories to reinforce the points. Well done!"

Amazon 5-Star Review: "This is a great book for anyone in business looking to enhance their leadership skills. Michael McGinnis teaches the most important techniques of becoming a great leaders. What I loved most ... "great leaders build up the employees in their organization first, and these inspired employees then build a great organization."

The Ripple Effect

We each make a difference every day. Our thoughts and actions, positive or negative, create a ripple effect, a vibration that is sent across the universe. Begin with a simple smile to others and watch it reverberate. Extend a hand to others in need and feel the difference. This is the Ripple Effect.

A collection of videos on the topics of Personal Growth, Self-Discovery & Enlightenment.

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TikTok

A growing library of 1-3 minute video clips on all aspects of Personal Growth, Self-Discovery, and Enlightenment

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Podcasts

Michael has teamed up with Transformational Talk Radio to launch his new podcast, U Can Do It: Inspiring Growth – Igniting Potential. On U Can Do It, Michael’s goal and purpose is to engage with YOU in open and candid conversation to guide and inspire you to be your full potential.Our focus is to guide and inspire you to master the most amazing journey you have – YOUR LIFE! It's a journey of Personal & Spiritual Growth, Self-Discovery, and Enlightenment. Whether you seek to heal your past, transcend limiting beliefs, unlock your true potential, or uncover greater levels of meaning, understanding, purpose, love, and direction in your life, our show will engage you with open and candid conversations featuring the ingredients to becoming your full potential!

Click To Go To Podcasts

WordPress Blog

My WORDPRESS BLOG features posts on many topics related to personal growth & self-discovery, what the journey is like, tips to consider, and more. No sugar coating, just open & candid conversation!

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