I have been thinking about what I am good at. Using a really awful interpretation of the 80/20 Rule (Pareto Principal) I think I should be super awesome at 20% of the things that I do and 80% of my results will come from those things. To do the very best I can in life I am going to focus on those super awesome things and let the others take care of themselves.
“But” I hear you say “What about being a well rounded person? Improving those bits of you that aren’t super awesome would be a worthwhile pursuit would you not think?”
Not at this point in my life.
You see with my focus (but still not my actions) fairly and squarely on getting out of corporate life, I can’t afford to spin my wheels or spend precious time on things that aren’t going to help me right now.
During the week I watched the YouTube video of Jason Calacanis (Founder of Mahalo) talking about what he sees are the things that make-up an entrepreneur and how they can be interpreted by non-entrepreneurs. Now Jason, while he says he gets plenty of speaking invitations, isn’t really a good speaker. His passion does not translate to what he says, but despite that I still heard what I needed to hear.
I need to get REALLY focussed.
So what is it I do really well?
I can write well, not as well as I used to write, but practice is bringing it all back. I can put words down in such a style that people enjoy reading them. I can have text conversations with their minds and excite their thoughts and imaginations using a keyboard. That’s probably where 80% of my income will come from in one way or another.
I know the internet, social media, communities, forums and how to bring people together. i think I will have a pretty good shot at creating some cool mash-ups by combining what i know and can do in these areas.
I am great at planning, motivating, visualising and documenting processes/procedure and work flows.
The rest of the stuff I am good at …. well that may be a niche market I won’t write about here *wink*
Have you ever considered what you do well?
Sitting down and writing everything you do well is a great self esteem builder. This list is for YOU and no one else so you can be perfectly honest. Every single thing that you are good at can be a marketable/saleable product.
You might be an absolute wizz at cleaning the oven. Don’t dismiss such a valuable skill! How to get Your Oven Spotless :Oven Cleaning for Everyone is just what someone is looking for right this very minute. How to Test a Dodgy Radiator Hose, Dehydrating Fruit For Beginners, Cleaning Greasy Fingernails….Write that list, then add another five things to it each day. Get used to thinking about what you do well and recognising it.
You might be surprised to see that the things you are good at will start popping up everywhere. This is good news and is exactly what is meant to happen. The more you focus on your strengths, the more opportunities will present themselves to use those strengths.
Check it out for the next couple of days and just see what crosses your path.
June 12th, 2008 at 9:54 am
Love this. I read Marcus Buckingham’s book – Now Discover Your Strengths – some time back and really try to focus my efforts in life on doing the things I do well. But the book always makes me think of the high-level work-related things and not necessarily the day-to-day things of life. (Like dehydrating fruit.) Need to go back to my list to see my strengths and where there might be something I’m great at that could be a niche area for me. Liking it!
(Just looked at my list though. This is going to really take some clever thinking on my part.