As you know, I try to start every week with some words of wisdom, like these:
In school, I tried to always sign up for subjects I already had some knowledge in.
Why? Because it made me feel great. “This is going to be easy,” I’d tell myself. (If you remember from my past messages, English is my second language, and late in life I was diagnosed with Non-Verbal Learning disorder. For the full story, click here.)
But what did my counselors tell me? “You should take classes in the subjects that you are weakest in.”
While learning new subjects is a great idea, striving to develop weaknesses can work against you. Conventional wisdom says we should work on improving our weaknesses, as these are missed opportunities.
Imagine what would have happened if Albert Einstein, Chris Evert, or Luciano Pavarotti had followed that advice. All these people devoted their entire life to develop their natural strengths. As a result, they each were at the top of their fields.
Highly successful entrepreneurs, as well as top scientists, athletes, and entertainers throughout history, have achieved greatness by focusing on their areas of strength.
Everyone has a natural aptitude for something. We all have a special gift.
Most of the time we don’t recognize our own gifts. The truth is that we are all very different – you are able to do something better than I can, and I can do some things better than you.
What are your natural talents? Get help recognizing them in next week’s email.
Carlos
