When You View A Talent As An Obstacle

Those that know me know that it is in my DNA to be organized, a list-maker, and a planner. I cannot help it, it is what I do. I've always been about being on time (although for me to be early is to be on time and to be on time is to be late, lol). I think and over think about lists, deadlines, and the consequences. I have a sense of tunnel vision; I look at deadlines as the big picture and everything that must be accomplished in order to get there. For years though I looked at my skill set as being a weakness.

I've had previous bosses come to me with a vision, a project, or a goal. Their gift was to be the visionary, have the idea of what they wanted to achieve. My gift was to look at all the details and things that would need to be done in order to make it happen. But as soon as I would start to remind them of the deadlines they would say, 'Whoa, you need to relax and learn to just go with the flow.' What? Were they really serious? Did they have a magic wand that I was unaware of? Would the results they were expecting mysteriously just fall in to place without any effort? Highly unlikely. 

After dealing with several bosses that thought that way I started to think there was something wrong with me; something wrong with my desire to get results. But guess what? There wasn't anything wrong with the way I thought or my process. Without my skill set a lot of their visions wouldn't have come to the fruition they did and the goals would not have been met when they wanted. I am all about being part of a 'team'. A good team sees and appreciates the strengths and skills of each member. A good team is a puzzle, but when a piece is missing it is not complete.

I spent a lot of time soul searching, looking at my skills, and finally being able to appreciate them for the asset they are. The way I see it, God made me the way that I am. He gave me the tools I needed to do the things I do and the desire to want to use them for good. I decided it was wrong for anyone to have a God-given talent and then to waste it. 

Learn to embrace your character and your talents. Everyone's are different which is what helps make the puzzle complete. We need each other. We need to appreciate each other's talents. There are things I know I cannot do at all and then there are tasks that although I try I can admit I am not very good at, which makes me appreciate other people's talents that much more.

What is one of your strongest talents? 

Do people appreciate it or make you feel weird about it just because it is different than theirs?

What's Your Mountain?

Everyone has something they're trying to overcome; a mountain they're trying to conquer. Some may have an addiction or what seems like an insurmountable fear. Many may deal with loneliness, depression, or loss of faith. Some have a goal they're trying to reach. For some, stepping out of their comfort zone may just feel too big for them. What do we do when that happens? How do we conquer our mountains?

For me, I've always found that I get a bad case of nerves when I need to speak in public. It goes back to high school and being paired up with the smartest kid in school on the debate team. Now I know what you're thinking ... if I had a case of nerves why was I on the debate team? Good question. I suppose I like to face my fears head on and try to overcome them. Doesn't always work of course, but at least I'll get an A for effort. I thought, somehow, that I'd start out slow ... observe the other students and learn from them. Boy, did that backfire. We ended up going to the State tournament. I thought I'd never survive, but somehow I did.

To this day I still find myself purposely putting myself in situations that I hope will help me overcome my fears. People will tell me I do well, but of course I never believe them. Why? Because I'm my own worst critic. Someone will say my hair looks good and I suddenly doubt and think, 'Are you sure?' I don't know why I think people will always say nice things just to try and boost me up. Maybe they were right ... maybe my hair really did look good that day. (lol) At some point our confidence has to grow and we need to learn to believe in ourselves and be able to stand sturdily on our own two feet.

What's my current mountain? Still the same old thing; speaking in public. So what am I doing about it? Same old thing; putting myself in a position to speak. This time it's BIG (at least for me). Saturday I will be one of 2 guest speakers at the opening ceremonies of a local Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk. More than 600 people will be listening to what I have to say. What's my goal  - besides getting through it? To inspire 'one' person. If I can do that then all the rest is just icing on the cake.

What mountain are you currently trying to conquer and how can I help?