by Jared Goralnick
I kick ass…but not at most things. I have no regrets…except for a few.
It’s no secret our greatest asset is time and our greatest predictor of success how we spend it, yet most of us have grown into our roles and task lists without giving it much thought.
Where do we kick ass…and where do we struggle? Where do we have leverage..and where are we a replaceable worker bee?
At a dinner the other night, we got on the topic of "what are you best at?" An interesting question perhaps, but it led to a couple better, more specific ones:
- In what area are you uniquely skilled, relative to others?
- Of your unique skills, which can you leverage the most for impact?
Take two minutes to consider your answers.
Though there’s scarcely one right answer, it’s likely that your responses will not be how you spend most (or even much) of your time.
I believe my answer is my ability to offer feedback and communicate advice in a way that’s useful and specific. With my team that comes in the form of product vision, specifications, and feedback. With the outside world it comes in the form of speaking and writing.
And as I look back on the past decade, my only regret is that I haven’t written more, created more, and shared more. Like many of you reading this, as my team and responsibilities have grown, I’ve dealt more with unplanned situations, rather than setting my own agenda. But, as I wrote a few months back, that’s not the way to make a difference.
How about you — are you spending most of your day in an area where you kick ass and leverage your time? Any advice, for you or for me, for how to get back on track?
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I’m at the discovery/customer development phase of my startup and most of my day is communicating my vision, listening to feedback and developing minimum via product requirements. I could be developing a prototype like many of my peers, but I believe that coding and development take me away from learning and communicating which I believe will contribute in the long run to building a successful startup.
Rock on, Terry! Good luck!
I am an eloquent designer. I can verbally address thousands with confidence and I appreciate the value of functional aesthetics. I am currently forming a team that will be launching a business in 2012 targeting a niche market with new media. I am excited to leverage my unique skills to approach the identity and branding of the company. Thanks for the brainstorming moment!