What’s Your Knack? – Part 1…You

Time to Read: 2 mins...
Knack is a special, innate talent – something you are naturally good at.
Some examples:
- Mary has a knack for numbers – she can look at a spreadsheet and quickly see its essence.
- Tim is a natural organizer of people and things.
- Anita’s knack is telling interesting stories that make you think.
- Julio’s knack is for graphics and design – need a logo? Ask Julio.
- Bob Iger, CEO and Executive Chairman of The Walt Disney Company, was described as having a knack for forging trust with business partners – including former adversaries.
What’s your knack? What are you naturally good at? Not sure? Ask anyone who knows you – your talents are obvious to them.
What does this have to do with leadership?
- First, knowing yourself – your strengths and weaknesses – is critical to your success. Self-awareness limits blind spots and allows you to take risks with more confidence.
- Second, it helps you surround yourself with people who complement you and each other. This makes for a stronger unit. (…the subject of Part 2 of this post) Having a bunch of people around you who are just like you and agree with you all the time can lead to serious problems and errors.
- Thirdly, it gives you a platform for personal development. How to better use, deepen and expand your strengths.
Action Steps:
- Make a list of the things you are naturally good at. Rank them high to low. What are the top 2 – what’s the one that you instinctively use and feel the best about.
- Ask two or three colleagues who you’ve worked with for a while to make their list of what they see are your talents.
- Compare the lists – what insights did you get?
- Do this at home. Get together with your significant other and/or family and do this exercise. Share what you see each other’s strengths are and what that person does to demonstrate their knack.
- Important Tip: Do not bring weaknesses into this exercise whether at work or at home. It will be a buzz kill. Leave any exploration of what you or others are not so good at for another time and place.
Tell me what you think – add your comments below.
Charles St.John
P.S. Part 2 of this post (coming soon) will talk about how to use talents to power boost your team. Watch for it.
Excellent Bite Size tip! I’m excited to share this with my family and colleagues. Well done! Thank you!! Please keep them coming!