Three questions to know what talent you have

Identifying our skills is essential to find a job or improve our position

We all have talent, but we don’t have talent for everything. The difficult thing is to identify the ability we have, especially when we intend to start a new professional stage or when we are a bit lost. There are three simple questions to clarify where to go: that we like? What are we good at? What do others value about us?When the answers are not the same, conflicts arise.

Before looking at it in more detail, let’s make two brief clarifications: First, we are not talking about talent like that possessed by artists or geniuses, but rather those abilities that allow us to stand out and achieve good results in the professional field. Second: they are not innate abilities. It is true that certain skills come from the cradle, but what counts professionally requires work and effort. After these qualifications, let’s take a closer look at the three previous questions:

– What do we like? Passion is the main engine for the development of our potential. If we do not enjoy what we do, it will be difficult for us to stand out. Motivation and passion are different. While the first can disappear one day because we have had a bad night or a problem, passion is continuous over time and is not damaged by specific circumstances.

– What are we good at? We may really like something, but to be talented we need to stand out and achieve results. That requires effort, learning, experimenting, having teachers or references. In short, spend time and effort . Picasso summed it up beautifully: “Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working.”

– What do others value about us? If we are talking about the professional level, we need to turn our skills into results. We can be passionate about our work, we can dedicate time and effort to it, but if it does not interest others, it will hardly be considered a talent . As we explained before, we are not talking about those geniuses whose worth is recognized after their death, but about the majority of people, who need a company or a client to be willing to pay them for their work.

If the three previous conditions are not met, it is difficult for a person to have a recognized talent that lasts over time. If one of the answers does not correspond to the other two, problems arise. For example, if what you do excites you and you are good at it, but there is really no one willing to value it, it is a hobby . You will enjoy yourself and it will entertain you, but you will hardly be able to make a living from it. This is the reason why many entrepreneurs fail. They surround themselves with friends who encourage them, but they don’t have the thermometer of what the market really needs.

If, on the other hand, you are good at what you do and others recognize it, but you don’t like it, you end up stuck in a routine and you can end up burning yourself with what you do. It will be difficult for you to let go, because success is a bad ally for changes, but little by little, you will arrive home worn out. Finally, if you really like what you do and others value it, but you are not good at it, it is a very vulnerable success over time . At any time, another person can take the cat to the water without you being able to realize it. In summary, we must think about our work: if you like it, if you consider that you are good at it and if you feel recognized for it. If the answer in all three cases is yes, you are more likely to have a talent recognized in time.