{"id":14554,"date":"2015-09-30T08:00:08","date_gmt":"2015-09-30T12:00:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/simpleprogrammer.com\/?p=14554"},"modified":"2018-04-12T00:40:48","modified_gmt":"2018-04-12T04:40:48","slug":"you-dont-have-to-do-what-you-are-good-at","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/simpleprogrammer.com\/you-dont-have-to-do-what-you-are-good-at\/","title":{"rendered":"You Don&#8217;t Have To Do What You Are Good At"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>We all have strengths and weaknesses. This should come as no surprise to anyone.\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is common advice to work on your <a href=\"https:\/\/simpleprogrammer.com\/2015\/08\/10\/which-of-these-fears-is-holding-you-back\/\">weaknesses<\/a>, so you can turn them into strengths. This can be fine and, when applied judiciously, can turn you into a more well-rounded person. It can also result in spending your precious time on actions that don\u2019t bring you joy and activities that don\u2019t enrich your life, or the lives of anyone else.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When you spend <\/span><b>your<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> time doing something you don\u2019t want to do, you are taking your most precious resource and squandering it in pursuit of something undesirable. This is exactly what is meant by the proverbial phrase \u201c<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/cast_pearls_before_swine\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">casting of pearls before swine.<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201d<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There is nothing more valuable than your time, and you need to spend it enhancing your experience of life. When you consider that your existence is finite, you need to be prudent about how you use it.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is in your best interest to use your strengths to your advantage and to be cognizant of the areas in which you lack strength.<\/span>\\n\\n<\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Reconsidering Strength and Weakness<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-14564\" src=\"https:\/\/simpleprogrammer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/Depositphotos_18474537_m-2015.jpg\" alt=\"Depositphotos_18474537_m-2015\" width=\"400\" height=\"276\" \/>Think for a moment about the meaning of strength. Think, also, about weakness. If we are to consider your strengths and weaknesses, and how to allocate your time accordingly, we need to understand what it means for something to fall into these categories.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s easy to view those things you do well as your strengths. The term \u201cstrength\u201d really implies being good at something. Physical strength makes it easier to perform actions with your body than it would be able to in the absence of such strength. Mental ability makes it easier to solve a puzzle of reason through a complex challenge. Thus, it\u2019s only natural to think of the areas in which we are the most successful as the core definition of strength.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Let\u2019s look at strengths and weaknesses from a different angle, though. Could it be that your strengths are not necessarily the pursuits that you do well and that come easily, but the actions that give you energy, joy, and life?<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Podcaster and life coach <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.tripplanier.com\/about\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Tripp Lanier<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> views strengths and weaknesses exactly this way. When I started listening to his <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thenewmanpodcast.com\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The New Man<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> podcast, something that really resonated with me was his emphasis on the need to be \u201clit up.\u201d<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In order to live life as best you can, to be consumed with life, and to maximize your utility in this existence, kindling a figurative fire in your soul is a great illustration for the best of what life has to offer.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Don\u2019t you love the sound of that? Who wouldn\u2019t want to be lit up for life?<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to Tripp, your strengths are the endeavors that light you up<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2014<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the actions that bring you energy and joy, the enterprises that charge your batteries, the pursuits that make you feel alive.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In short, a strength is something that inspires you and helps you to be your most authentic self.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">By contrast, weaknesses are the exercises that drain your energy, the activities that take your life force, the obligations that make you feel spent.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Which of those do you want to engage?<\/span>\\n\\n<\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Light It Up!<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-14565\" src=\"https:\/\/simpleprogrammer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/Depositphotos_9580259_m-2015.jpg\" alt=\"lighter on black background\" width=\"233\" height=\"350\" \/>Notice this formulation does not include any mention of the things you do well or that come easy to you. <\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s not that what you do well is completely independent of what lights you up. In fact, there is a relationship between enjoyment and competence. Doing something well is rewarding in and of itself.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For example, I feel one of my most significant talents is relating to children. I derive immense joy from interacting with small humans. Because of this, I coach youth sports for my kids\u2019 teams. <\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The feedback I\u2019ve received in these efforts has been positive. Hearing from parents and from the children themselves that my efforts have been positive warms my heart and brightens my spirit.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In a meeting, the coaching director of my children\u2019s soccer organization (football to many of you in the Simple Programmer world) said \u201ccoaching these kids can drive you to therapy, or it can be your therapy.\u201d<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is exactly the case for me. Helping kids learn about being part of a team, the unfairness of life, and dealing with events that don\u2019t go as planned, while ensuring they have a positive, fun experience, lights me up.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If I didn\u2019t feel like I was good at it and doing it effectively, it probably wouldn\u2019t light me up . Certainly not to the degree it does.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sometimes, though, it\u2019s not enough. I know other coaches who, despite having a positive impact and receiving great feedback, view it as a chore. They view it as an activity they\u2019ve committed to out of a sense of obligation, and they\u2019re just trying to get through it.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Being good at it is not enough.<\/span>\\n\\n<\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Professional Athletes, Like Programmers, Need to Be Lit Up<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the United States of America, many people are interested in American football (it\u2019s probably more accurate to say obsessed), particularly the National Football League (NFL).<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the history of the NFL, there was an exceptional player named Barry Sanders. His athleticism was extremely astounding and he could move his body in ways unlike anyone else, ensuring that he is always mentioned in any argument about the greatest players who ever lived.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In his prime, Barry Sanders was a spectacle for the capacity of the human body.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And he quit.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He retired from playing American football at a time when it was unexpected by everyone. His skills were not diminished; he still awed and amazed everyone when he played.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And he quit.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shocked and outraged, fans felt cheated by not being able to see him exercise his talents. They were wrong, though, he didn\u2019t owe them anything. The talent was his and his alone.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He was undeniably good at playing football<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, but he didn\u2019t have to do it.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Neither do you.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There has been speculation about why Barry Sanders left his game, why he bowed out before the ravages of age and the physical toll of being a professional athlete left him less capable. Maybe he was unhappy with his pay. Maybe he was unfulfilled playing for a losing team. Maybe he had some personal problems.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These conjectures and the truth are inconsequential details, though. Ultimately, being a professional athlete was sapping his energy, instead of adding to it.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to the typical definition of strength, American football was exactly that for Barry Sanders. He was astoundingly good at it.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Thinking about it more in terms of the impact it had on his experience of life; it was something quite the opposite.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Consider the activities consuming your time. Do they result in positive or negative changes in your energy and fulfillment? Adjust accordingly.<\/span>\\n\\n<\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sucking Your Soul<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-14566\" src=\"https:\/\/simpleprogrammer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/Depositphotos_71059537_m-2015.jpg\" alt=\"Death on a black background, Dementor\" width=\"400\" height=\"400\" \/>In the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Harry_Potter\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Harry Potter saga<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, author <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.jkrowling.com\/en_US\/#\/about-jk-rowling\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">J.K. Rowling<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> invented a world of magical creatures and powerful wizards interacting in marvelous ways, interweaving a tale of a boy who turns into a man through a journey of self-discovery.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Amid harrowing adventures, Harry encounters many of the lessons a growing boy learns. He has experiences that make him grow and many that set him back as he progresses along <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/exec\/obidos\/ASIN\/1608681890\/makithecompsi-20\">The Hero\u2019s Journey<\/a><\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. This is no different than the experiences of any of our lives.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Among the amazing and powerful magical creatures in the epic tale are the gruesome and phantasmic <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/harrypotter.wikia.com\/wiki\/Dementor\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dementors<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. They are beings so terrifying and terrible that killing a person is not good enough for them.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We learn of the <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/harrypotter.wikia.com\/wiki\/Dementor%27s_Kiss\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dementor\u2019s Kiss<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in the third book of the saga, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/exec\/obidos\/ASIN\/0439136369\/makithecompsi-20\" target=\"_blank\">Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban<\/a><\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. The Dementor\u2019s Kiss is an act of violation upon the victim, so heinous that the victim loses not his\/her life, but his\/her soul.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I think of the Dementors when I think of spending time on weaknesses. When your life force is sucked from you via an activity that tears you down, you suffer both the misery of the things you don\u2019t like, while also missing out on opportunities for other things that could have built you up instead.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s like losing a piece of your soul.<\/span>\\n\\n<\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Being Good at Something Is Not Enough<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s easy to look at the things we do well and choose to do those with our time. There is danger in this, though. There are many tales of successful software developers and entrepreneurs who put their life into their work, only to find themselves in crises, losing their health, family, or other valuable priorities.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s great to do what you do successfully, but there\u2019s always a cost. If your actions are not making your life more enjoyable, you\u2019d be better off doing something else. You must consider the person you want to be, the life you want to live, and choose actions consistent with your values and priorities.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">John Sonmez wrote a sentence in a post here on Simple Programmer that really moved me. In writing about why <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/simpleprogrammer.com\/2015\/09\/07\/money-wont-make-you-happy-programmer-edition\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">money won\u2019t necessarily make you happy<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, John included this gem: \u201cHow many days did I spend waiting for the clock to tick down to 5:00 PM instead of actually living and enjoying every moment I had writing code or solving problems?\u201d<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Writing software is fun. It\u2019s useful and valuable and challenging, but it\u2019s also fun. At least, it can be. Remember that, and take the joy that comes from solving difficult problems with technical tools and enjoy it. Let it build you and light you up.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Your job can be fun and rewarding.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If software doesn\u2019t light you up, you may need to consider doing something else, even if you are really good at it.<\/span>\\n\\n<\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Perform Activities That Bolster Your Experience<\/span><\/h2>\n<p>\\n\\n<\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright wp-image-14567\" src=\"https:\/\/simpleprogrammer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/Depositphotos_24699539_m-2015.jpg\" alt=\"Handsome man holding light bulb balloon\" width=\"243\" height=\"350\" \/><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019re good at something, there\u2019s a correlation that it may well be something you enjoy. Everyone likes success. If you have talent and aptitude for any particular endeavor, it\u2019s not only possible, but likely, you\u2019ll enjoy doing it.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is not a certainty, though. I encourage you to go deeper. If you enjoy the recognition that comes with ability, you still need to consider the activity itself. Is what you are doing really adding to your experience of life?<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If it is, congratulations, you are making the most of the existence we share. If it\u2019s not, you\u2019re missing out.<\/span>\\n\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Every time you say yes to one course of action, you are saying no to everything else. Doing something because you are good at it is not necessarily the optimal choice.<\/span>\\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You don\u2019t have to do what you do well; you should do what lights you up. Count yourself among the fortunate if those are the same. Choose wisely if they are not.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We all have strengths and weaknesses. This should come as no surprise to anyone.\\n\\nIt is common advice to work on your weaknesses, so you can turn them into strengths. This can be fine and, when applied judiciously, can turn you into a more well-rounded person. It can also result in spending your precious time on&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":14563,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[162229812,2185,162229782,162229112,1883271,5895],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14554","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-advice","category-best-practices","category-goals","category-people-2","category-productivity-2","category-self-improvement"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>You Don&#039;t Have To Do What You Are Good At - 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