Stop Ignoring Your Unique Gifts

Acknowledge Your Gifts

You were given a unique set of gifts. Some, you’ve already discovered while others appear as you learn and grow. Do you recognize and appreciate those gifts, or insist you’re an average person with average skills, abilities and talents? If you do, you’re not alone in underestimating your value.

As a creative, I’ve done a lot of those surveys that ask you to list the things you love, the things you hate to do, and where you think you excel. I admit, I’m as guilty as the next person of minimizing my qualities, and emphasizing my flaws, which means I often fail to recognize where I truly excel.

It’s a real eye-opener to hear someone compliment me on one thing or another, or to tell me they are lousy at something I seem to do well, and effortlessly. Granted, little, if anything I do is effortless. I may have learned to streamline, or get out of my own way, but somewhere along the line, there’s effort, even if it’s simply sitting my butt down in front of the computer and putting my fingers on the keys.

Learn to Look Inward

I’m quick to recognize skills or talents in others, and slow to recognize them in myself. In that, I suspect you and I share a less than exemplary trait. I can’t tell you how many times my daughter has given me what for when I say my first novel, “Sasha’s Journey” is nowhere close to ready for publication. I know it’s OK, but far from what I’d consider marketable, or even interesting enough to give away. I can almost hear her eyes rolling as I type that.

Years ago, I had a friend who worked in a similar field to mine. When we’d talk shop, she’d insist I was brilliant, and far smarter than she, though I could never see it, nor can I still. What she had that I didn’t was the willingness to stick with a job and employer for the long-term rather than jumping from job to job in search of something better, though frankly, I’m not sure what better looked like then, nor do I now.

She had a strength I lacked, and any brilliance I might have had ultimately got buried in frustration, and office politics until I let the latter drive me out of the business entirely for awhile. I still refuse to go back to an office, but enjoy flexing my accounting and finance skills for small, growing companies who need one less task on their overflowing plates.

Honor Your Gifts

It’s easy to recognize areas where your skills and talents are weak. For me it’s marketing, and, even now, self-confidence. The key is to accept you can’t be good at everything, strengthen your skills where you can, and accept help where the cost of improving a skill is higher than the benefit of simply outsourcing it and freeing up your valuable time to do those things you truly love and excel at.

Given the choice, where are you going to put in the effort to grow and improve? Is it the task you know is necessary, but have to literally grab yourself by the scruff of the neck and force yourself to do it? Or are you more likely to dive into a course or book that builds on the skill set that brings you joy and satisfaction? I don’t need to tell you which choice I make, day in and day out, nor which tasks get my attention first.

It all starts with admitting you have gifts, and honoring them instead of belittling them. One of my toughest lessons was learning to say “thank you” for a compliment instead of making a dismissive comment. In the first place, it insults the person making the compliment. You’re telling them their words are meaningless, and they don’t know what they’re talking about. In the second, it demeans your own efforts, skills, and above all, the beautiful gift you’ve been given.

Meant to Inspire

I learned the hard way, self-deprecation is unattractive. Any lessons you learned to the contrary should be exhumed, and incinerated immediately. I’m not saying you should shout about your brilliance from the mountaintops. But damn it! Learn to accept a compliment gracefully, and admit you truly are good at something—at a whole bushel of somethings.

If you ask me, there’s not a single person on Earth who isn’t especially good at something; who shines once they learn to wash off the mud and muck piled on by low self-esteem, and those damaging lessons about hiding your light, and keeping a low profile. Thank goodness for all the people who didn’t listen, and went on to innovate and inspire. You have it in you to do the same.

Maybe your influence won’t spread internationally, or even nationally, but that’s not the point. There are people out there who need to see your light shining brightly, and illuminating the path to embracing their own gifts. They, too might feel like hiding their light under a bushel for fear of failure, or worse, success. They’re not ready to step into the limelight; to attract attention. Like you, they fear having their stumbles exposed; maybe ridiculed.

Attract The Ones Who Will Uplift and Encourage

Sadly, there will always be haters, but know they hate because they’re afraid to let people see their true selves. They see everyone else as better than they could ever be, so instead of allowing themselves to try, fail, tweak, and try again, they put their energy into tearing others down. It took me awhile to figure out those people are to be pitied, and left behind. They’re not part of your journey. They might appear to test your resolve, but offer little else of value.

Once you honor the gifts you’ve been given, and accept the challenge of learning, growing, and inspiring others, you’ll find more helpers in your path. Some will teach you more of what you need to grow, while others are your cheer leaders. They encourage you to keep trying, to keep doing what you do, and to, in essence, go public.

The world needs you to use those gifts; to raise the overall vibration of humanity in your own way. Big or small doesn’t matter. Acceptance, and tenacity are what counts. The only limitation to your progress; to how high you can climb is you. Why would you consciously choose to get in your own way?

 

About the Author

Sheri Conaway is a Holistic Ghostwriter, and an advocate for cats and mental health. Sheri believes in the Laws of Attraction, but only if you are a participant rather than just an observer. Her mission is to Make Vulnerable Beautiful and help entrepreneurs touch the souls of their readers and clients so they can increase their impact and their income.

If you’d like to have her write for you, please visit her Hire Me page for more information. You can also find her on Facebook Sheri Levenstein-Conaway Author.

Be sure to watch this space for news of the upcoming releases of ” Rebuilding After Suicide” and “Sasha’s Journey”.