Recently, I was reminded how easy it is to pass judgment on someone creating a limited view of their potential and capabilities. My family had accepted an invitation to spend the day at a friends lake house. The conversation during the drive down was full of anticipation and excitement. There were tales of great big fish just waiting to be caught, stories about 50 mph tube rides, but it was the double dog dare to jump off the boathouse that provided the lesson for this day.

This particular lake cottage had a flat roofed boathouse that provided a great place to lie in the sun and enjoy the lake view. For the kids, however, the major attraction was the gap in the railing on the waterside. This gap was specifically put there to allow the bravest of souls the opportunity to hurl themselves through the air and into the lake more than 10 feet below.

After the first round of tubing had been completed it was time to conquer the boathouse. So our three youngest children made their way to the roof. As I watched the kids approach the open rail I was not overly concerned. Rachel (7) is very cautious by nature and would not even consider jumping, while Brianne (12) and Jimmy (9) are both good swimmers and had jumped off the boathouse last summer. Besides that, all three kids had ski vests on and would probably not go more that a few inches under the water if they did jump.

What happened next surprised us all. My sweet little girl Rachel, the one who screams in terror if a fly lands on her foot, the one who has to have a Band-Aid even if there is no sign of blood, took off running across the roof of the boathouse and jumped fearlessly into the lake below. How could this be? Anxiously, I waited for Rachels reaction, but she emerged from the lake all smiles. In fact, it was so much fun she went back to the roof and jumped again. I was completely stunned.

As I thought back on this day I realized how easy it is for me to pass judgment on someone without even knowing I am doing it. In my mind, there was no way Rachel was capable of jumping off that boathouse and I couldnt have been more wrong about her. Fortunately, I had not said anything to discourage her so she was able to approach this challenge with an open mind. Proving once again that there is nothing more powerful than an open mind when it comes to exploring the edges of someones potential.