Today, I came across this quote in Twitter.

It’s your successes that define your right path. Listen to them and they’ll tell you what you’re good at.

It was placed there by someone called lizstrauss – Not sure if it is her quote or not. Whichever way, it got me to thinking about the fact that so many of us spend a considerable amount of time improving what we are not so good at. Sometimes this happens at the expense of those things that we are excellent at.

This really is a faulty way of thinking and acting on things. How much better are you going to get, improving those things you are not great at? You may become an average hand at it. Who wants to pay an average person? Certainly not me!

Time and effort is surely better spent focusing on things that you are already good at. Any time spent improving your skills in this area of your life can only make you amazing at something you were only good at before. This surely is a better use of your time. Ask for help when it comes to things you are not so good at, even if it means giving someone else some money. Yes, this may be tough especially since most entrepreneurs are reluctant to allow anyone else into their world. The motto is usually something along the lines of ‘You want something done right, do it yourself’. This may be true but you will get more accomplished playing with your strengths.

What are my strengths?

Most of us spent a lot of time at school, where we are taught a whole range of subjects so we get to know a little about a lot. This sometimes makes us lose track of things that we actually enjoy or are good at. We are used to doing whatever we have to in order to survive in the world, at our jobs and in our relationships. We have forgotten how to celebrate our differences.

As the quote said, you need to think of times you have excelled or times when you did something that came pretty easily to you. It can be a heady feeling to find easy something others think is difficult. Think back and try to underline those times.

Make a note of them, knowing that these are the things we should probably spend time improving and start to spend more of our time focusing on those skills. Imagine where your life could be if you did spend an hour or so, honing that skill day after day. By next year, all manner of doors could open for you.

Get to it!