You ARE Unique and Have Special Talents!

Most people are their own worst critic, unfortunately.  We have an inner dialogue with ourselves that is continually judging, criticizing, comparing, and putting down anything that you do.  Sometimes we are aware of this but mostly the dialogue is running on autopilot.  Often it’s the only voice we hear with us so we think it’s perfectly normal.  Between when we are born up to the age of 6 or 7, we are a totally blank slate and are like a recording machine, absorbing what we hear and see from our environment.  After that age, we start to have our own opinions and begin our own conscious thinking…but the foundation of how we react to situations has already been set.  This becomes our belief system or programming within our subconscious thinking.  The environment we grow up in is crucial to our future success—or lack of success.  The good news is that we are discovering ways that we can reprogram our brains and there are many experts now teaching about this and also how to bypass the consciousness to change beliefs systems that are deeply rooted in the subconscious.

I mention all of this because we need to understand that we all have our own unique talents that we are meant to work with, and because we are so often our worst internal critics, it can be hard to identify these unique talents.  When you start to identify your talents, be aware of the inner critic and tame that voice down.  You deserve to understand really why you are here and what you are meant to contribute.  Discovering your unique talents is a part of that process. 

These talents are things that you do so well and naturally, that you may not even be fully aware of them yourself.  It’s just a part of who you are.  And it is very likely you’ve been doing these things since your childhood.  There are a several ways to really figure out your uniqueness and I’ll cover a few ways here.

The first way is to think about your life and what have you loved to do.  What comes naturally to you that you really enjoy doing?  It’s easy and you feel good whenever you are engaged in these activities.  When have you felt that things have gone really well in your life and what were you doing at that time?  What have been the best moments in your life and why?  Start a list of all the activities, events, or situations where you have felt really good about what you were doing.

Next, ask people who know you well and who you trust—your parents, siblings, spouse, children, friends, co-workers, therapists, etc—a few questions:   what do I do well that makes me stand out from everyone else?  What comes so easy to me, that is hard for other people, that I don’t even see it?  What do you think makes me special and different from everyone else?  Write down the answers.  The good thing about this exercise is that you may find yourself pleasantly surprised to know how others perceive you.  And it definitely will help you identify many of your wonderful attributes and talents.

The other exercise I recommend is work related.  Take a look at each of the jobs you’ve had and find your “WOW” factors.  These are the things you did in each position that made a difference.  They are your accomplishments and how you served others in the best possible way.  They can be specific goals you reached, or the support you gave.  These are the points your bosses, clients, employees, and co-workers would be raving about you. 

Once you have all three lists completed, you can look to see what the common threads are.  What keeps coming up in each?  So many people end up spending a small percentage of their time working with or using their unique talents, which causes a lot of discontentment.  If you know what your unique talents are, then you can begin to structure your time and days around using them as much as possible.  We see so often that people will try to fit themselves into a job description, instead of doing the internal work to figure out what unique talents you have that you love to work with, and THEN finding work that fits that.

Happiness is not a goal, it’s a process.  Knowing yourself, your special talents, and what you can do to make a difference in the world, is only going to have positive affects in your life.  Take the time to do your inner homework and you’ll find yourself on a path to a better life where you feel the amazing contribution you were meant to give to the world!  You ARE special and you ARE unique!  The question is, do YOU know that?

Join me for a F*R*E*E call where I'll be going into more detail about finding your unique talents.  You can register for this event at http://dreamjobdiscovery.com/. 

Our World Is Changing...Now

                Being a headhunter in two continents, working with international companies, and learning to work with people of various cultures has given me a broad perspective of the business world.  There are some trends I see happening now that are going to change the way we do business and the way that we work dramatically.

                I have met so many people who are simply miserable in their jobs or careers.  They have followed advice or guidance from others and have ended up in a position where they feel stuck, frustrated, depressed, and quite frankly, hating their lives.  Between 35-50% of our waking hours are spent on our jobs.  We are not meant to live a life that we hate! We weren’t made for that.  The problem is that so many people get wrapped up in being busy like a carousel going round and round in circles never going anywhere. 

                As a life coach, executive recruiter, and mentor, I have asked thousands of people questions about their dreams, their true desires, and where they want to take their lives.  Often I get a look of a deer caught in the headlights on a night road—frozen with fear because they don’t know!  My questions have often triggered some serious soul searching to figure out what they really want to do with their lives and this begins a journey of getting in touch with their inner desires.

                What I see happening now in the business world is that our traditional models of doing business are beginning to crumble.  Traditional big business, where companies only purpose is to make money, regardless of the good of others, are failing.  Simply look at the Enrons of the world, or the banking system.  The companies that I see thriving are those that have a clear and deeper purpose of serving the world in some good way.   Many companies that are proactively taking measures to improve their carbon imprint, and have full and open reporting, who have appointed a Chief of Social Impact, Director of Social Responsibility and other such creative titles indicating social or global awareness for the organization.  These are companies that will not only survive but are thriving during these difficult economic times.  A company in line with a higher purpose has a better chance of being sustainable than one that is not aligned with its purpose.

                But what does that mean for you as an individual?  It means it is really time to discover why you are here!  To find out your true purpose and figure out what work makes your soul sing.  When I went to university, I loved art and wanted to study it.  But I believed that I wasn’t good enough nor would I be able to support myself so I studied speech communication as well.  My career has served me well and I have found ways to be creative in my work.  But I do often wonder where I would be had I followed my love for art.  I’ll never know really but I still paint as a hobby and love to go to art galleries and museums.  I’ve done a lot of soul searching and know I am on my true path…to serve and help others find their true path and to stop living a life they are not satisfied with. 

                We are meant to love what we do for our work!  Just imagine how that would feel and how it would trickle into all areas of your life if you were doing something you absolutely loved to do.  Wouldn’t that feel wonderful?  Isn’t it time to start figuring it out if you aren’t in that position now?  Take time to yourself and write a list of things you absolutely love to do, things where you lose all track of time while you are doing it because you are enjoying yourself so much.  That can give you a good start to discovering what you truly long to do.

                Our world is changing quickly now.  It doesn’t mean the world is coming to an end as some of the naysayers out there are predicting.  It means the world as we have known it, with all the traditional systems, will be coming to an end.  But those who are prepared will find their way through the chaos and be living the life they have dreamed about.  Will you be one of those innovators?  I hope so!  We need as many people as possible now discovering and living their dreams.  This is the best time ever to do this!

For more information, please visit our site at http://inspiringyourverybest.com/.

What Is Your Working DNA?

What Is Your Working DNA?

                It seems to me that everyone has a natural attraction to certain types of work, jobs, and careers.  Even if people do change jobs regularly these days, it is possible to find a common thread through most job progressions if you look for it.  What struck me is that perhaps we are all programmed within our cells to want to have a certain type of profession.  I discussed this with Sergio, my partner in business, life, and my best sounding board.  We started to see the similarities as we brainstormed the traits that we identified.  We came up with three main profiles of a working DNA.

                The first is the Entrepreneur.  The personality traits seem to be pretty obvious.  They tend to be risk takers, fast moving, very determined, and visionaries.  To an entrepreneur, work is play.  They are often service minded individuals who see new opportunities in old problems and are always looking for solutions and ways to make improvements.  A true entrepreneur sets up a business and owns a system that doesn’t require his or her physical presence in order to function.  They play a critical role in our society because they are creating new jobs and services that improve our lives.   Education is really not a concern and a high percentage of entrepreneurs don’t even finish high school or college.  Look at Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, John Assaraf, and Bob Proctor—all  of whom have made a huge impact on the world without completing their education.  They will often define success as building a business where they have a clear exit strategy, being financially free, and having the ability to serve many.  These natural leaders have mastered leveraging time and resources and they enjoy income from dividends, equity, passive income from their investments, and perhaps a self determined salary.  They are paid from the efforts of others.

                The second profile is the Consultant/Specialist.  These people tend to be independent, self motivated, task oriented, and flexible.  They are quality minded and have a curious diagnostic approach.  They have special skills or talents that they can capitalize on and earn a living.  They own their job.  They can work on multiple projects and often wear many hats.  They love to work independently and have the freedom to determine their schedule.  They are project or service oriented and they get paid for the results of the direct efforts.  They generally have a foundational education and continue with specialty courses and certifications.  They operate their business or consulting from their passion and make enough money to enjoy the lifestyle they desire.  They provide important services or functions for companies and individuals that help improve and make things run more smoothly.  These can be any sort of consultants, musicians and actors would fall into this category, and we also put Soloprenuers here—people who have a business but it is a one person business.  They are dependent on their own efforts to receive their income.

                The third profile we came up with was the Corporate Talent/Employee.  These people are often more structured, team oriented, and security minded.  They enjoy an organization, whether it is small or large, that gives them benefits such as insurance, retirement, vacation, etc.  These people enjoy the daily interaction with co-workers, working in a team and being a part of a larger mission.  Their educational background is very important and here you will see the highest percentage of Masters and MBA’s within the corporate world.  These people are employees, managing other employees, and tend to have only one job at a company (although some may feel forced financially to have second job to make ends meet).  They earn a salary or an hourly wage, and are paid for their daily input or contribution.  A new trend for employees is telecommuting as companies are becoming more flexible but the vast majority work where their job requires them too.  These people are the backbone to our society, providing value and structure, whether it is with a business, a government, a non-profit organization, or a service organization such as a restaurant or hotel.  You know when you receive good service from someone who has a passion for their work because they make you feel good being there for that moment.  They often define success with achieving a higher salary, promotions, better office, or status.

                Our world needs individuals from all three categories and each is important in its own way.  I do want to say that it is possible to grow and change into different profiles depending on your life circumstances and your desire to make that change—we are after all, reprogrammable.   An Employee can certainly invest in him- or herself, get the training they need to make a change into the Consultant or Entrepreneur profile.  Or a Consultant may decide that it’s too lonely and make the change to the corporate world.   But I believe that a person will often revert back to their original programming over time if they do not permanently change their innate behaviors and complement their environment to support that change.    For example, a corporate executive may decide to start their own company but they need to make sure they have the right team to enhance their chances of success.  Without it, they may become discouraged and go back to what they know they can do naturally.

                If you recognize yourself in one category and your dream is to be in another category, just be aware that you must change your behaviors and find the right support to make that change successful.  It’s great to dream big so don’t let anyone stop you from believing in yourself and your capabilities!

By looking at all the jobs you’ve have had, it’s possible to see the trend and recognize your profile.  This is just one step to helping you identify the best working environment and culture for your dream job.  Which is your working DNA?